


I'm A Slave For You

by IllusionEvenstar



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Characters Are in Fandom, Consensual Underage Sex, Debauchery, F/M, Fetish, M/M, Master/Slave, Minor Original Character(s), Past Child Abuse, Rape/Non-con Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-24
Updated: 2017-12-09
Packaged: 2019-02-06 09:39:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 90
Words: 343,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12814776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IllusionEvenstar/pseuds/IllusionEvenstar
Summary: Lucius made Severus join a slave trade auction party, in which Severus bought a slave out of sheer whim. What is it about that slave that attracts him so?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Old fic I wrote in 2008, completed in 2010
> 
> After a few weeks RP-ing together with my friend Lil a.k.a. Living Behind the Mask, we (or more accurately, I) decided to create a full-fledged fanfic out of our crazy smexilicious RP. Most of the scenes were about two years worth of RP fodder, thus the length of time it took to complete the fic. So be in for a lot of sexin’ and lovin’, people!

           The entire auditorium of Obsidian Multi-Purpose Hall in Knockturn Alley was hustling and bustling with life and chatter of the elites as they all gather around talking about things elites always talk about. All of them had either a drink, a piece of finger food or a pipe in their hands, discussing about the event that was about to come. In here, everyone knew everyone, and Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape were no strangers to them either. Clad in their usual expensive robes and attire, they greeted each and every one present in their own way, entertaining those who wouldn’t hesitate to curry their favour so that they could benefit from their wealth and connections. Both of them could see through their facades and dealt with them accordingly, but each at their own means.

           Having talked almost everyone alive in the auditorium, Lucius took a sip of champagne he got from one of the passing by waiters, turning to Severus and asked, “How do you like the scene of this place so far, Severus?”

           Severus raised a brow. “It is....alright, I guess.”

           “I bet you're wondering what sort of auction party is this, are you not?” Lucius chuckled before randomly reaching over for a glass of brandy from another passing by waiter and handed it to Severus, in which he took nonchalantly and sipped it.

           “You read my mind.”

           “Believe it or not, it's a rare auction trade party. This is where slaves, mostly sex slaves, get traded here for sometimes more than a king's ransom of a price. Everyone from all walks of elite life come here to attend this trade. It only happens once every 5 years now, unlike when it used to.”

           “And only a few can afford that. Why are they rare? Slaves are not uncommon commodities these days.”

           “Because, my dear Severus, this is an illegal trade. Honestly, Severus, you continue holing yourself in that little dark mansion of yours, I swear I would only know of your death in the obituary section. Ever since the Ministry of Magic decided to adopt one of the Muggles’ acts about prevention of cruelty towards human labour rights and caused the entire race of house elves to go extinct because they have lost the will to live since they didn’t know what to do with their new-found freedom, slavery is a luxury only we can afford and almost a forbidden—banned, even—commodity to the common folk.

           “And most of those being sold here are real people, not some odd bedraggled creature that spawned out of nowhere. There are very few people nowadays that still live in extreme poverty, I must admit, but those who do would do anything to have at least a scrap of food or two, even sell their own flesh and blood. Most of them are either Mudbloods, Halflings or pure Muggles who usually don't know much of the wizard world and how much is wizard money are really worth in Muggle world. You show those muggles a bag of Galleons and they'll even sell their mothers if they want to. Makes you wonder what else people can do, don't you think?”

           “Yes, it does. Remind me why I let you make me come?” Severus sneered. He didn’t need another mouth to feed.

           “Because you're the godfather of my son, dear Severus. We're family. And because I have two invitation tickets given by the organizer of this party himself, but Narcissa couldn’t come because of her own wives’ club. Oh, you don't really have to buy anything. Most of us just enjoy seeing the rush of those who's buying trying to outbid each other. That's the beauty of auction parties.”

           “Sure,” Severus rolled his eyes. Nothing good ever comes out of his god-brother’s ‘brilliant’ mind. Ever since he had known Lucius in his first year in Hogwarts and had formed sort of a brotherly relationship all the way until Severus graduated, they have planned—and failed—many attempts of Lucius’ so-called ‘bright ideas’ and had landed them more times in detention than in classes and lost more house points than a cat grows its whiskers. He didn’t know what possessed him to continue on this brotherly relationship. _Probably because Lucius was the only one who ever gave a damn about me, I suppose,_ he thought to himself.

           “Good evening everyone, if you would just take your seats, the auction will begin,” the MC soon came up stage and announced, alerting everyone that the crème de la crème of the event was about to start. Everyone present began shuffling around, taking their seats. Lucius followed suite.

           “Come along, Severus. Sit back and enjoy the party,” Lucius said as he gestured Severus to come over and join him in his designated seat. Severus shrugged and sat down beside him. He didn’t really have anything much to do anyway. It wouldn’t hurt watching the event, even though he wasn’t in for the game.

           Soon, as the event carried on, naked children no older than 12 to 13, along with a dozen older teenagers and pre-adults or so, mostly males were sent up stage one by one, lead by slavers with leashes and chains, and people started bidding and buying as they came. Just as Lucius mentioned, they were mostly Muggle-borns, half-wizards and witches, and pure Muggles. For Muggle-borns and half-wizards and witches, they didn’t seem to think it strange being in front of a bunch of wizards and witches bidding for them using their wands and the Lumos spell to show the MC who they were and where they were seated, but for pure Muggles who never knew such people actually exist in the real world, they looked as if they have been taken from one nightmare to be dumped into another. Fortunately, those that had such expressions were the ones that have already been in the slaving business for a while and had their share of past masters. The rest were relatively new and looked stoned, obviously drugged so that they can be subdued and not cause any trouble during the event.

           “Next up, we have a child who was born by a union of a pure wizard and a Muggle-born, raised in a Muggle family after their death, who in turn sold him back to us for 14,000 Sickles. Introducing Harry James Potter.”

           As if in cue, the said Harry James Potter was dragged up on stage by the slaver in chains and leashes. He was totally naked and totally stoned as he could barely even walk properly, so he was literally dragged across the stage floor into the middle of the stage for all eyes to see. Severus, who at the beginning was watching the show in disinterest, soon blinked and sat up straighter. He didn’t know why but he couldn’t keep his eyes off him. As Severus watched the boy let the slaver lift his chin and spread his legs for everyone to see as the MC continues to describe him, he noticed that he was barely even 12 yet had physical features of a 10-year-old, almost like a child with malnutrition. He was very fair, almost going pale and had black, unruly hair and was thinner than any average child should, although not to the point of being skin and bones. But despite all the bodily imperfections, he had the most beautiful sparkling jade-green eyes anyone has ever seen, and it was those eyes that caught Severus’ heart in an instant.

           “I want him,” he whispered to himself, unable to comprehend nor contain this overwhelming feeling that was threatening to burst out of his chest.

           “The bidding will start at base price 14,000 Sickles,” the MC announced, and soon random people began to bid, each going higher and higher. Severus’ mind began to conflict with his heart. He wanted to join in the bid but he had his pride to keep. After all, he came here only because Lucius asked him to and not because he wanted to. Why would he want to indulge himself into something he had no particular interest with whatsoever?

           In the end, his aching heart to own the little boy on the stage betrayed his rationale as his hand that held the wand raised on its own.

           “30,000,” Severus bid, lighting his wand with the Lumos charm. Lucius raised his eyebrows at the sight and watches with interest.

           “50!” a random guy from one corner shouted. Severus recognized the man as one of the members of the Auror team in the Ministry, and most well-known for being rather aggressive and violent in his line of work. Severus growled inwardly. There was no way he was letting the child go to him. A bidding rally ensued.

           “65!”

           “70!”

           “100!”

           Everyone gasped at the amount Severus desperately gave to outbid the Auror. The Auror seemed to be struggling inwardly as to whether to bid a higher price. Severus didn’t care. He wanted the child no matter what. It was now or never.

           “100,000 Sickles!” the MC exclaimed. “Do I hear any higher? Going once, going twice, SOLD to the gentleman over there for 100,000 Sickles!”

           Everyone clapped as Severus sat back down. One of the ushers in the party came up to him to pass him a redeem ticket to get his purchase backstage. He didn’t know whether he did the right thing or not as he accepted the redeem ticket, but he knew that he had finally got what he wanted, and technically that was all that mattered to him.

           “I thought you weren't interested in this sort of thing,” Lucius said, grinning mischievously.

           “I once knew a man with jade green eyes,” Severus replied nonchalantly. “I like green eyes.”

           “Right…” Lucius looked at his god-brother skeptically.

           “Don't you have a slave that needs to be fucked at home, Lucius?" Severus sneered and stood up as soon as the auction party was over, walking in line with all the other bidders to collect his slave. Lucius shrugged casually and got off his seat to wait for him outside the auditorium, muttering to himself.

           “I've heard worse from him.”

           Severus, along with the other bidders, soon moved to the backstage to collect his purchased slave. They all produced their redeem tickets to the slavers standing in wait and they all led the purchasers to designated section of the backstage to be given their products. Severus gave his ticket to a burly-looking bald slaver and he led him to the far end of the backstage where a huge big cage stood, anchored to the ground with dozens of chains. Inside, the little boy named Harry James Potter was leaning against one side of the cage with a gag across his mouth and a leash around his neck that was connected to one of the cage railings. His hands were tied behind his back and the chains that wrapped him up, making him look like a mummy on lead, were grounded by one big hook that is attached to the floor. Severus ached at the sight of the boy slumping over there in a blur because of the drugs, not even knowing that he had already been bought.

           The slaver opened the cage and unlocked and unwrapped all the chains off Harry’s body before dragging him out through the leash and pushed him to Severus, “He’s all yours now, sir.”

           Severus took the boy and took the gag off his mouth, throwing it at the slaver and sneered, “Keep it.”

           As he walked out with the boy behind him, he could feel all eyes staring at him, or to be more exact, they were staring at the boy he was leading. Still stoned from the drugs, he hobbled and staggered a little to keep up with his speed, and because he was fully nude, some of the men he passed by, disregarding their already bought slaves, ran their fingers on the boy and snuck a few gropes here and there as they passed by, making the boy squirm and moan in contact. Severus threw them all a death glare and decided to carry the boy in his arms instead to keep away anymore busybodies from touching his merchandize. By the time he came out of the auditorium and into Lucius’ awaiting carriage, he almost breathed a sigh of relief.

           “So this is the slave that got you so infatuated, eh?” Lucius said as he viewed Harry from his spot. Severus had him lying down beside him with his head on his lap, letting him ride out the drowsiness of the drugs. “He’s rather beautiful for a slave, don’t you think?”

           “Yes, he is,” Severus admitted quietly as he couldn’t help threading his fingers through the child’s hair all the way home

\--:--

           “What is your name?”

           The boy looked up at Severus, a little disoriented after his long sleep. As soon as they reached home, Severus wasted no time to take him to his room and let him sleep on the bed. The poor boy Harry must’ve been very drugged and very tired for he had slept through almost 48 hours without even waking up to eat, drink or piss. When he finally woke up, Severus gave him something cold to drink to wake his senses and was now face to face with him as he tried to get some information out of him.

           “Your name, slave,” Severus asked again.

           Harry tried to say it, but he didn’t seem to know how to form words out of his mouth.

           “Well at least the MC from the auction said it. Now I know you are a sexual slave, but I don't need that. You can be my personal slave. Do you know how to do that?”

           Harry thought for a while, trying to understand what he said, then nodded hesitantly.

           “Good, now I think a bath is in order. I didn't have one this morning and I have a class to teach later. Come, I will show you what you need to do.”

           So saying, he got up and waited for Harry to get up as well. The boy followed him obediently behind as Severus led him to the bathroom. He ogled at the sight of the marble floor tiles and the expensive-looking toiletries that Severus had, and he absolutely gleamed at the way his midnight blue tub shone under the light. Severus had to tap his head to get him back to focus.

           “From now on, you will bath me and help me get ready in the morning,” Severus instructed as he started undressing himself, “and that means getting my clothes ready, my breakfast done and all my necessary work items prepared at the front door table on time. I will show you where they are once we’re done. Understand?”

           Harry nodded, then got started on filling the bath tub with warm water for his master to bath.

           “You will need to shower as well,” Severus said as he helped Harry remove the leash around his neck, picked him up and put him inside the bath tub. “But mark my words, this will be the only time I will ever bathe you, boy.”

           Harry blushed as he allowed himself to be manhandled by his master as they both bathe each other, washing each other from head to toe. By the time they were done and Harry helped Severus to get ready his clothes and work items for school and watched him leave the front door, both the boy and the man finally and actually felt refreshed for the first time in years.

           This was the beginning of a rather peculiar relationship for the both of them.


	2. Chapter 2

           Draco Malfoy sat on his knees on the couch looking back outside the window where it was raining. He had school work he had to do, but he was tired of all that. All he wanted was to go out and play on this beautiful Sunday afternoon but of all days, it had to rain on this day. Draco sighed and sulked at his unfortunate plight.

           Soon, Remus Lupin came into the room with a tray of snacks and tea. Clad in his almost worn one-piece T-shirt dress of sorts, Remus was one of the many sex slaves who was part of the auction party a few years back sold and bought over by Lucius Malfoy. He had diligently did his duty as a sex slave, carrying out every sexual whim and fancy of his master—and mistress if she felt like joining in—and became a personal bodyguard, nanny and servant for Draco. He had been serving his purpose in the Malfoy manor for almost 3 years now and personally he rather enjoyed the relief of doing menial duties than to serve the master’s insatiable sexual appetite almost every night.

           “Here’s your tea, Young Master,” Remus said as he placed the tray of snacks and tea on the table in front of the couch.

           “Remus, will you sit with me?” Draco asked, turning around to face his personal slave.

           Remus was surprised at that question but knew better than to question it. “Um, yeah, sure, Young Master,” he replied as he sat with him.

           “Why does it have to rain on a day I don’t have work?” the young boy sighed.

           “It's fate of the weather, Young Master. You can’t change it even if you want it to.”

           “I want to get out of this house," he announced as he looked back again, the rain still coming down in torrents.

           “Why?” Remus was surprised again. His Young Master never behaved that way. During his years of serving him, he had always known him to be a spoilt but cold brat who wouldn’t take ‘No’ for an answer and always had that icy stare that looked down at you as if you were just a cockroach to him. Today he looked almost…sincere and child-like.

           “It is stuffy. I want fresh air. The only time I get out is when I have riding lessons. Then the air smells like horse and…you know.”

           “But you’ll catch your death out there, Young Master,” Remus chuckled. “You know your mother doesn’t like you having the sniffles.”

           “But you will be with me,” Draco replied as he grabbed Remus’ hand, pulling at him. “Come on.”

           Remus smiled and shook his head in defeat, sighing as he allowed himself to be led. “What am I to do with you, Young Master?”

           “Obey me, of course.”

           So saying, Draco went out to the backyard where the stables were and into the rain, twirling around as the rain that had slowed down to a drizzle soaked him from head to toe. Remus stood under the shelter, watching his antics.

           “Remus, come here,” he giggled as he gestured his personal slave to come to him. Remus chuckled and did so, feeling the pitter-patter of the rain on him. Draco leaned forward and asked, “Doesn’t it feel good?”

           “A little wet, but definitely cooling,” Remus admitted.

           Glad that he managed to get his personal slave as wet as he was, Draco ran over and jumped in a puddle, sending the muddy water splashing all over his new grey pants and all over Remus’ T-shirt dress. Remus was horrified to see his Young Master’s pants caked with mud and immediately tries to salvage what’s left decent of it.

           “Young Master, your pants! It’s all dirty!”

           “They can be washed. Don't be like my mother.”

           “But Mistress will have my head for this. I’m supposed to look out for you.”

           “You are. What do you think you’re doing right now?” Draco sighed a little at Remus’ restlessness before tipping his head back to taste the rain. Remus blushed a little at the sight of Draco sticking his tongue out a little like that to taste the rain. It felt almost odd, and a little…enticing to see this absolutely different side of Draco Malfoy he had never seen before in his life. He half-wished that the old cold, icy stoic Young Master was back because he was feeling out of sorts seeing this new one, what with his stomach doing a major flip-flop worse than having imaginary butterflies flapping and tickling his insides and his lower half slowly reacting.

           Draco looked at him. “Are you just going to stand there?”

           “Um, well, I…” Remus fidgeted about slightly, not sure what to do.

           “Don’t look like a stick,” Draco giggled and ran up to him, taking his hands and pulling him closer to him. Remus was caught unaware at Draco’s sudden advances and fell forward, thei faces barely touching each other. He could’ve sworn his face has just gotten a few degrees hotter at the sight of Draco’s pale smooth skin and shining silver-grey eyes.

           “Y…Young Master…”

           “Did you know you are handsome?” Draco asked huskily, licking his wet lips. Remus definitely knew where this was heading.

           “Young Master, we can’t…”

           “Why not?”

           “Well, I’m a slave, and you’re my Master…It’s wrong…”

           “But you are a sex slave. There’s nothing wrong about what we’re going to do.”

           Remus’ breath almost hitched as he remembered who he truly was. He sighed in defeat. _So this is what Young Master thought of me all along. I knew it’s too good to be true…_

           “Yes, that’s what I’m trained to do after all.”

           Draco smiled and pulled him into the stable where it was dry and they were alone. Slowly he leaned up and pressed his lips to Remus, in which the older man kissed back as tenderly as possible, threading his fingers through his silky silver blonde hair. He didn’t think Draco’s tiny lips would feel so rosy and soft and taste so good. He had wanted those pair of lips since the first day he served his Young Master, and in a way, he was getting what he wished for. He could tell that his Young Master was inexperienced in this as he heard him moan slightly in the kiss but didn’t know how to put his lips. His tongue was not even moving the right way. Remus slowly guided his lips to right path and did a slow dance with Draco’s tongue, letting him get used to the feeling and making him go steadily in synch with his. As they continued their French kissing, Remus quietly reached over to remove Draco’s clothes one by one. The boy was too dazed to realize at first but when he felt Remus’ hand starting to remove his pants, he quickly pulled back, scared out of his wits.

           “W…Wait! I…I’m not sure about this…”

           “I thought this was what you wanted, what you wanted me to do,” Remus asked, slightly confused at Draco’s sudden unwillingness.

           “Well…I…I just…”

           “You don’t have to do this if you really don’t want to, Young Master.”

           “I just…I just thought about kissing…I did,” Draco stammered as he put his hands over his body, feeling cold not only because of the rain, but also of fear. “I never meant to…I’m not…”

           Remus looked at him for a while. He never wanted to have sex with him? He just wanted to kiss him? Whatever he planned to do, it was nothing to do with having he, the sex slave, ravish the young boy’s perfectly formed body? Judging by the scared look in his eyes and his trembling body, Remus realized that he was the one getting ahead of himself after all.

           _He’s just a child,_ Remus thought guiltily as he wrapped his arms around Draco, trying to warm him up. _He’s still a virgin. What have I almost done?_

           “But…I…I can’t help being curious…” Draco whispered softly in an embarrassed voice. “I want to know what is it that makes you who you are, yet…at the same time I’m afraid to find it out by myself…”

           _You have no idea what I truly desire to do to you,_ Remus whispered inwardly in the privacy of his own mind. _But I won’t corrupt you. I won’t taint this beautiful soul of yours, but if you wish to know…_

“If you truly wish to find out what makes me who I am,” Remus voiced out as he looked gently into Draco’s silver orbs, “Let me teach you then something they first taught me in this business.”

           “What is it?”

           As reply, Remus carried Draco to a nearby table where they keep the tools for horse shoes, brushed them all away and put Draco on top, saying, “This. The basics of all basics,” as he removed Draco’s pants to reveal his young manhood. Draco gasped as he felt the cold air whipped against his bare lower half.

           “Are you going to do what I think you are?”

           Remus smiled and nodded, “Relax, Young Master, I’ll make you feel good.”

           So saying, he took Draco’s length in his hand and made a soft stroking motion, making the boy gasped again in a different sort of tone and gripped his wet sleeve. The older man then lowered himself until he was kneeling right in front of Draco’s cock and started kissing and licking the tip of the sensitive shaft that was already beginning to leak of pre-cum.

           “Gods, Remus,” Draco whined as he gripped the older man’s head, seemingly hyperventilating over the overload of senses. Remus took that as a cue to put the head of the cock into his mouth first and applied suction to it, sucking and licking at the same time, while his hand continues to stroke the rest of it.

           Draco, on the other hand, never felt anything like this. Something near his stomach was tightening and he felt like he was going to pee, but at the same time he knew it was not peeing he was about to do. The feeling of Remus’ wet lips and tongue and the movements of his hands as they did their double assault was too much. If Remus didn’t stop, he was going to explode.

           “Stop, stop, please…!”

           “Something wrong, Young Master?” Remus asked in a muffled voice, the cock still in his mouth as he stopped whatever he was doing, the vibration from his voice making Draco tremble.

           “It’s too much…I think…I think I’m going to come or something…”

           “It’s OK, Young Master. Don’t hold back. It’ll make you feel good.”

           Remus soon removed his hand and took Draco’s cock entirely into his mouth, deep-throating him. Draco hissed as he felt his mouth totally engulfed in this wet heat and couldn’t help thrusting his hips into it. As Remus continued to sucking and deep-throating, he reached a hand out to tease his balls. With his skillful fingers and mouth, Draco was soon driven to the edge and screamed Remus’ name as he came into the older man’s mouth. Holding onto the boy’s hips to keep him in place and prevent him from literally falling off the table, he swallowed every last drop like it was nectar from the gods. Never in his lifetime had he ever imagined that he could finally taste his Young Master’s juice; he wouldn’t want to waste it. Never mind his hard-on right now; he just wanted to suck his beloved Young Master dry.

           “God, that was nice,” Draco panted and laid back on the table, his brain felt as if it has just melted into a big puddle of goo and sloshing around in his brain. Remus wiped his mouth and laid his forehead on Draco.

           “Did it feel good, Young Master?”

           “Yes,” Draco replied, sitting up but still shaking a little. “Did it feel good for you?”

           “Yes. You taste exquisite, Young Master,” Remus replied, trying hard to ignore his own hard-on almost sticking out of his T-shirt dress. “Just like you.”

           Apparently being dressed with only one clothing with nothing else underneath (courtesy of one of Lucius’ fetishes) was making Remus’ ‘excitement’ a bit too obvious for his Young Master as Draco eyed the bulge with interest, biting his lip and asked, “Are you…do you want to me to do it to you too…?”

           “You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Remus chuckled nervously as he tried in vain to act normal about it.

           “But…But I want to make you feel good too…”

           “It’s alright, Young Master, I can manage. You, on the other hand, look exhausted.”

           As if by cue, Draco felt as if his whole body was turning into jelly. It was his first time and he had to admit, he had come quite a load. His weak body fell forward into Remus’ arms, in which Remus held them out to hold him close to his chest. Trying to think of something irrelevant and disgusting in particular, Remus kept his ‘excitement’ at bay as he carried his Young Master to his room. After drying him and changing him off his wet and dirty clothes, he carried Draco and laid him on bed, pulling the quilt over him and let him drift in slumber into whatever Dreamland he may enter.

           After making sure that he would be alright alone, Remus got off the bed and bent down to pick up the laundry he had to pass to the laundry servant downstairs to be washed. He knew he had to face that dirty look of the laundry servant, just as he had endured all other dirty looks from other servants, maids and butlers due to the fact that slaves have always been hierarchically lower than the hired help, but it was alright. He was used to it anyway. As long as he had a place to stay and food to eat—and his Young Master to serve—he was willing to endure everything thrown at him, come what may.

           He stole a whiff of Draco’s laundry before he quickly made his way downstairs to see the laundry servant.


	3. Chapter 3

            It has been almost 2 months since Harry James Potter stayed with and worked for Severus ever since the fateful day he was bought by him. As ordered by Severus, Harry did his job as a personal slave and the hired help of the house were ordered to treat Harry just like everyone else in the house and anything he required from the servants were to be passed to Harry to pass it to him. The servants, despite the fact that Harry was of their lower level, respected Severus’ wishes reluctantly and acknowledged Harry just barely, for the last thing they wanted to do was cross their Master and receive severe punishment from him. A couple of younger servants (almost the same age as Harry) named Neville Longbottom and Colin Creevey seemed to find fondness on this little quiet and timid boy though and genuinely became good friends with him, and sometimes during meals, would bring their food over to his seat and shared with him.

            True to his word about treating Harry as a personal slave instead of a sexual slave, not once did Severus touch him other than platonic or master-wise, which includes patting him on the head whenever he did a good job and bonking Harry lightly on the head or pinching his cheek whenever he made a mistake, but nothing harsher than that. Sometimes Severus could go for almost days without touching him at all, and only gave him the orders of the day and left him alone to his own devices. Harry often wondered what it was that he did wrong, and would occasionally give his Master a questioning look, since he didn’t know how to talk, but Severus would just shake his head and ruffled the little boy’s unruly black locks, assuring him that everything was fine.

            This was Harry’s daily routine: in the morning he helped to set Severus’ clothes for the day before he joined him in the bathroom to bathe him. Then while Severus got dressed, he would totter off to the kitchen to get the tray of breakfast for the day prepared for his Master and take it into the dining room where Severus would be waiting while reading the Daily Prophet. While Severus ate his meals Harry is required to sit on the floor at Severus’ feet in waiting and help him pour the tea, spread butter on bread or break his eggs whenever he needed to. Occasionally, Severus would make him sit on his lap and he would feed him a portion of everything, and those were the only times Harry would ever get a decent breakfast. Other than that, he had to sit aside and watch as Severus finish his food before taking the tray to the kitchen to be washed and have his usual breakfast of porridge or oatmeal. After breakfast he would go to the study and his potions lab to prepare all the necessary work things for Severus before bringing them to the front door where Severus would be waiting, and after doing some last minute adjustments on Severus’ clothes and help him wear his shoes, Severus would bid him goodbye with a kiss on the forehead. He didn’t know whether it was platonic, masterly or otherwise, but it always got him sort of flustered whenever he does that, and those tell-tale signs on his cheeks were enough to drive his friends Neville and Colin into a fleet of teasing.

            While Severus was away at work, he would go and make Severus’ bed and cleaned his study and potions lab along with the help of Colin because he didn’t know how to read and Colin is one of the many servants who are literate enough to help him sort the paperwork, files and books. He knew that Severus was a teacher in a school called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and often come home with students’ homework that came in either huge bundles of scrolls or bottles of potion samples, in which he would mark them in the study or test them in the potions lab to give marks accordingly, and that alone would make a mess to either rooms. After that, he would join Neville to tend the garden, although sometimes he couldn’t resist plucking off the petals from the flowers and ended up being scolded or chased away by the head gardener. Once Severus came home from work, Harry had to greet him at the door like clockwork in which Severus would give him the customary forehead kiss (sent him flustering again in the process) and pass him his work things. He would help him take off his shoes and remove his robes before bringing him his lunch, or dinner or supper if he came home late at night. Again, he would either sit on the floor in waiting as usual while he ate or sit on his lap eating off his hands.

            After that he would sit beside him in waiting and refilled his tea whenever he wanted while he marked the papers for the day or tested the potions. Finally, at the end of the day, he would again bathe him and help him dress in his night clothes before retiring on the couch beside him. Sometimes the older man would fall asleep on his desk after a long day’s work and it was Harry’s duty to either wake him up to take him to bed or cover him with a blanket if he could not be awakened before he himself hit the sack, but one way or another, he would always wake up in Severus’ arms in bed, the beating of his Master’s heart near his ear. Even though nothing happened (Harry knew through experience whether or not he had been ‘broken into’), it still gave him a tint of pink on his face and made his heart skip a beat occasionally, even more so when Severus wakes up and gives him that sleepy smile when he said ‘Good morning’ to him.

            Harry couldn’t help feeling that his Master was more to it than being just masterly to him.

\--:--

            “Harry, can you speak at all?”

            It was Sunday today, and usually Sundays was breakfast-in-bed day where Harry got to eat out of his hand, but because of an important meeting he had to attend, Severus skipped breakfast and left the house, only to return home quite late in the evening and famished out of his head.

            Harry nodded at Severus’ question while helping him putting away his shoes, then said, “Ah!”

            “Can you say your name?”

            “Ha…Ha…eee…” the boy tried, but it came out retarded.

            “We will work on that. Are you hungry?”

            Harry nodded timidly. Truth be told, he hadn’t eaten anything all day. Things just didn’t feel right without seeing Severus eat and waiting hand and foot for him.

            “I think I’ll eat outside at the garden,” Severus said. “My colleague Prof. Sinistra said that it’s going to be a starry night out. I fancy a little dining under the stars. Would you get supper for me there?”

            Harry nodded and quickly made his way to the kitchen. Neville, who was the only one there washing fruits plucked from the vegetable and fruit garden, saw Harry coming in and stole a look at the time.

            “Supper, eh, Har?” he asked, in which Harry nodded. “Then help yourself to whatever you wish to make for Master Snape. We’re the only ones here tonight.”

            Harry gladly started cooking up a storm. Unbeknownst to anyone except Neville and Colin, Harry knew very well the art of the kitchen. They didn’t know how he knew how to cook—and the boy couldn’t even tell them if he wanted to—but they knew that when it comes to cooking, his food always tasted a lot better than their real cook as they were the lucky ones to taste them whenever they stayed up late and fancy a midnight snack. So whenever he had a chance, he would cook Severus’ supper, and would always try his best to make his favourite whenever the ingredients allowed it.

            Once he’s done, he brought the tray of supper out to Severus who was sitting on the outdoor dining table at the garden. Setting it down on the table, Severus did the age-old gesture of patting his lap.

            “Up on my lap, pet.”

            Harry slowly moved towards him and sat on his lap. Due to his physique, he weighed almost nothing on Severus as he sat, and Severus often wondered where all the food he ate gone to or if he had ever eaten at all in his two months stay in his manor. Soon he started feeding him by taking a bite first out of everything he wanted to eat before holding it out for Harry, in which the boy opened his mouth to be fed.

            “Nummy!” Harry grinned. He was actually trying to say ‘Yummy’, but it turned out weird like that. Severus, after hearing for the first few times when he began feeding him, was used to it by now.

            As Harry ate, he eyed at the glass of blood red wine on the table. He knew that Severus always and only drank wine with his night meals, so he would always remember to prepare a wine glass and a bottle of wine for him whenever he had his dinner or supper, but he had never tried drinking it. Not once. He never dared to try and taste it for fear of incurring his Master’s wrath, and his past masters, some of them who drank, never let him have a sip. They preferred him to be sober when he was…servicing them.

            Severus took a sip of the wine and noticed Harry’s slightly gleaming eyes at it. “Do you want some?”

            Harry looked up expectantly, giving him a ‘Can I?’ look.

            “It might not taste how you think though. Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Severus replied as he let Harry sip from his glass.

            As soon as Harry sip a small mouthful and swallowed it, his face flushed red almost immediately, the alcohol beginning to work into his non-alcoholic body.

            “Did you like it?” Severus asked and took another sip for himself.

            Harry smiled and stuck out his tongue naughtily.

            “Oh, I see you really liked it. Do you want some more?”

            Harry nodded playfully. Severus let him have the glass, in which Harry almost grabbed it from him and did a bottoms-up, draining the wine down into his gut while Severus watched with interest. Harry’s red face became even redder as the wine worked its intoxicating power on him and all Harry could do was grin stupidly and mutter “Nummy~!” before toppling off Severus’ lap onto the grass below.

            “Oh, pet. Now you’re drunk,” Severus said as he took the glass from Harry’s hand. “No more wine for you.”

            As he was about to reach over to pick the boy up, Harry began laughing like a little child as he started pulling down his own shirt, revealing his slender neck and one side of his pale shoulders, totally intoxicated and totally clueless as to what was going on around him. Severus found himself licking his lips as he watched Harry sucking one of his fingers as he tried to get up, but almost in an erotic fashion. Unfortunately for his drunken state of mind, Harry could only make it all the way up to his knees, so he looked like going on all fours with his ass sticking up.

            “Pet…” Severus breathed as he ran a hand over that ass, his self-control crumbling. Harry moaned, shivering at the touch. Severus pulled him up to kiss him, in which the boy boldly wrapped his arms around his neck and kissed him back passionately. He ran his hand down and all over the boy’s thin frame, reasoning with himself that the wine must have been getting to him too, when in truth he had been holding back his inner sexual demon for so long. He truly desired to hold his little pet like this ever since he bought him at the auction party but he didn’t want to set off such an impression and such a relationship with the little boy on his first day at the manor. That whole two months long of abstinence and the willpower he endured without touching him any further than platonic for fear of scaring the daylights out of him (and he didn’t want the fragile little boy to be frightened of him) was like trying to force him to jump from the high tower of Azkaban prison or making him drink cyanide laced with rat poison, and it was torturous for a man who hadn’t had a decent form of sex for so many years. They kissed and kissed like there was no tomorrow, but the need for air forced them apart.

            “Nummy~!” Harry grinned as he panted to catch his breath, his face all red like a baboon’s bottom.

            “Yes, it is. Let’s go to our room.”

            So saying, he picked Harry up and went quickly to their room, lying Harry on the bed. Harry giggled as he rolled around the nice soft bed, all the rolling making his shirt ride up on him and showing off his navel. Severus pulled the shirt off, looking at the half-naked Harry with pure unadulterated lust in his eyes. The red tint on Harry’s cheeks complemented perfectly with the rest of his fairer than fair skin, and his unruly hair framed the child’s sparkling jade-green eyes so exquisitely well. How could a young child like this look so frail and fragile, yet so angelic and pure at the same time?

            “Beautiful,” the older man breathed as he leaned down and took a nipple in his mouth. Harry whimpered at the contact of Severus’ warm lips and gripped at the bed sheets, his breathing erratic. Severus moved so he had one knee on the bed, continuing his licking and sucking on the boy’s chest, assaulting either nipple in intervals, making the boy mewled in ecstasy, totally enjoying the feeling of his mouth on him. Smirking at Harry’s sensitivity, he kissed up the boy’s neck, his hand snaking its way down under the pants to pump his little boyhood. Harry arched his back to meet with Severus’ touches, breathing quickened with each pump and his fingers gripping tightly at Severus’ sleeves as tiny moans and groans escaped those pair of rosy-tinted lips. Those lips that got him wanting almost every night as he watched the little boy sleep on the couch across his bed. Those lips that made him feel both blissful and fortunate to see in front of him as he carried Harry from wherever he slept to the bed before he slumbered and the first thing that met his vision when he woke up in the morning. Those lips that he dreamed of tasting every single waking moment of his life no matter what he did, be it feeding him or talking to him or just plain looking at him. Those lips that made him started going home almost every day no matter how late it was instead of staying back in the office or stay in his spare staff room in Hogwarts like he used to. Those lips. Those sinful lips…

            Seeing that the boy was close to losing it, he pulled away and reached over to get the lube he had kept religiously in the side table drawer for this day and poured some out on his hand. He then slicked up his fingers and rubbed on over Harry's opening. Harry whined and whimpered, seeming trying to say the words ‘More’ and ‘Master’ judging by the movement of his lips but didn’t know how. Severus chuckled and nibbled on his neck as he pushed in his fingers one by one, slowly pumping it in and out. He could tell from the way Harry was wriggling and squirming as he entered the third finger that he was feeling the rush of sexual euphoria.

            “Ready, pet?”

            Harry nodded desperately, almost near to tears with lust.

            “Wrap your arms around me,” Severus ordered as he lubed himself up before pushing in.

            Harry did so and widened his eyes and let out a strangled yell as he felt himself being entered before smiling seductively, signaling him to move.

            “Feels so good, pet.”

            The older man started moving slowly in a steady rhythm, each time going deeper and deeper until it soon began brushing against the bundle of nerves that made Harry see hot white flashes of stars. He let out a series of moans and wrapped his legs around his Master’s waist to bring him deeper inside, uttering the only one word that he knew how to say in perfect pronunciation.

            “Fuck!”

            “That’s what I’m going to do,” Severus replied, moving faster and harder. “Stroke yourself, pet.”

            Harry whimpered as he reached down to pump himself hard.

            “So hot,” Severus kissed his neck, going even faster, assaulting the sweet spot that made Harry moaned higher and louder. “Do you like that, pet? Do you like me fucking you?”

            “Y…Y…Ye…Fuck!” Harry screamed, stroking himself harder and faster. Apparently he didn’t know how to say the word ‘Yes’ either, but felt too enjoyable to nod for an answer.

            Severus could feel the familiar tightening of his stomach, but he didn’t want this experience to end just yet. Quickly, he rolled over with Harry on top of him and ordered him to ride him. Harry was only too happy to oblige. He put his hands on his Master’s chest for support and rode him, lowering his ass down onto his length and pounded deep and hard, shifting angles until he found the sweet spot again and ravishing it relentlessly.

            “Just like that, pet. Fuck,” Severus groaned as he pushed up to meet Harry’s thrusts, thoroughly enjoying the tight heat of muscles surrounding his manhood in pure bliss.

            “Fuck!” Harry screamed again as he bobbed his ass up and down to align with Severus’ movements, stroking himself at the same time.

            Severus, while he continued to indulge in this guilty pleasure, half-opened his eyes to see his pet as he moved. Beads of sweat dangled lazily on the boy’s chin and unruly hair (which was getting even messier) and visible here and there on his body, making it glistened. Droplets of tears of lust clung on the lashes of the wonderful jade-green eyes as the boy clenched and unclenched his eyes when he felt the sweet spot sending him closer and closer to the pinnacle of high heavens. Drool leaked seductively out of those rosy-tinted lips that got him into this situation, the music of love-making escaping through them. It was too much for him. He was getting closer to the edge. Quickly, he pulled Harry down to kiss him, then flipped him back onto the bed with the master on top, pounding into his pet fast, hard and deep. Harry screamed out the loudest his lungs could ever give at this pleasurable assault, not caring if the entire manor could hear him. He gripped the pillows hard with his other free hand, screaming the word ‘Fuck’ again and again as he was in a drooling, tear-filled mess, fully immersed into this love dance of fury.

            “I’m coming, pet. Come with me.”

            Harry’s cry sounded strangled as he was driven to the edge, the last few hits towards his sweet spot making him come all over his stomach and his hand that stroke it. Severus came seconds later inside him with a silent cry, the ring of muscles surrounding his manhood milking him for all its worth.

            “So good…” Severus panted hard, still inside Harry, waiting for the tremors to subside.

            Harry lay sprawled on the bed, his chest heaving up and down as he panted just as hard, totally spent.

            “Did you like it?” Severus asked as he pulled out slowly, hoping he hadn’t hurt him in any way. He had to admit, he had been rather aggressive. All that pent-up sexual frustration could definitely do that to any man.

            There was no reply from his pet. He saw him winced a little when he pulled out from him, but that was the only response he got from him. The boy soon turned over in a fetal position, sleeping while sucking his thumb. The realization soon hit him as he watched Harry drifted almost immediately into Dreamland. Harry was just a kid and yet he had fucked him. He had promised himself that he would never ever touch the boy. He had planned to stay true to his word and treat Harry like a personal slave, not a sexual slave. He claimed that he didn’t need that and yet he did not practice what he preached. Even if the boy was willing and ready to service him, he had sworn never to lay a finger on him. All that abstinence he had made himself endure had gone to waste by just that one act of carelessness. Guiltily, he cleaned all trace of their sexual intercourse with his wand and sat to the side, his head in his hands.

            “Shit.”


	4. Chapter 4

           “Mmh…More…Just a bit more…”

           Remus and Draco were at the stables again, the former sucking off the latter. Draco panted as he was coming close, curling his toes and fisting Remus’ hair while Remus gave it all he got, sucking and licking and deep-throating his Young Master until the boy screamed in completion.

           Ever since Remus gave him his first blowjob, they had been at it for 2 months straight. Of course, they could not do it everyday as they both had their duties to attend to, but every chance they get, they would meet up at their secret place in the stables, making sure that no one was around before getting down and dirty. Today was no different as Remus had yet again managed to milk his Young Master of his delectable juice.

           The older man waited until his Young Master fully stopped trembling before he let his hands off his hips and got up, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. He was wearing another long-sleeved T-shirt dress today that reached all the way to half of his thighs, courtesy from his Master Malfoy who bought it at a Muggle flea market in one of his trips to the Muggle world with the Ministry. Again, he wore nothing else underneath, not even an underwear and his ‘excitement’ was absolutely evident against the thin fabric.

           “You’re hard again,” Draco said not as a question, but as a statement.

           “It’s alright. I can manage,” Remus said that for the umpteenth time, making his Young Master scowl.

           “You always say that, and yet I don’t see you do anything about it. You never let me help you relieve yourself.”

           “Young Master, please. Don’t be childish. You’re tired after a long day at school. Come, I’ll…”

           “Who are you calling childish?!” Draco shouted, stopping Remus from reaching over to carry him, pushing him away harshly.

           “Young Master…”

           “What? You think I’m not ready? You think I just take all your services for granted? Why won’t you let me do anything for you? I want to make you come too! I want to make you feel good too! You’re just like my father!”

           Remus’ heart ached as Draco glared at him before getting off the table and put on his pants. He knew he had clearly offended his Young Master this time. He may be a child, but he was a growing, learning child with emotions of his own. Of course he wanted to try experience the things he had showed him. Who was he to question his integrity?

           “I’m…I’m sorry, Young Master…” Remus said as he hugged him from behind. “I just…didn’t want you to force yourself, that’s all. I’m…not in a position to ask of your help…”

           “Remus,” Draco said quietly as he turned around to face him. “I decide whether I wish to help or not. All you have to do is ask.”

           “I understand.”

           Draco looked down at the still ‘excited’ manhood behind Remus’ T-shirt dress and asked, “Do I have to swallow?”

           Remus chuckled and shook his head, “I won’t have you go that far if you don’t want to.”

           “So how do I do it?”

           Remus leaned on the table where Draco was and lifted his T-shirt dress, revealing his hard-on to him, “First you start by taking it in your hand and licking the tip.”

           Draco knelt down and took Remus’ length in his hand. Hesitantly, he leaned forward to lick the tip.

           “It tastes salty.”

           “You’ll get used to it soon. Keep licking it and all around my cock.”

           Draco did so, running his tongue around the head and down the length. Remus moaned a little at the feeling. Finally, another one of his sexual fantasies coming true.

           “Very good. You’re doing well. Now start sucking the head for starters. Use more of your lips and try to avoid using your teeth.”

           The boy took the head into his mouth. His mouth was slightly stretched to accommodate Remus’ size and it felt a little uncomfortable, but he sucked as best as he could. The taste of Remus’ pre-cum was making his mouth water. He swallowed so he didn’t choke.

           “Take it easy, Young Master. Slow and steady. Don’t force yourself,” Remus said as he tried to keep a level head while enjoying the blowjob.

           Draco bobbed down he tried to go as far as Remus did but ended up gagging instead. He pulled off coughing.

           “Don't force it, Young Master,” Remus said worriedly as he patted Draco’s back. “Your mouth is still too small and not trained. Just go as far as you can and let your hand to do the rest.”

           “Sorry,” Draco whispered as he regained his composure. He was determined to make it good for Remus, and that was exactly what he planned to do. He started bobbing again.

           “It’s alright. Just do it nice and slow,” Remus moaned in satisfaction. “Mmh, yeah, like that.”

           Draco carried on with his blowjob, moving his hand up and down the length. He was starting to get hard again as more and more of Remus’ pre-cum lingered in his tongue, unconsciously arousing him. Remus noticed the bulge and patted Draco’s head.

           “Touch yourself, Young Master.”

           Draco nodded a little, reaching down to stroke himself and moaned, humming his pleasure sending its wonderful vibrations all over Remus’ length.

           “You’re getting really good. Mmh, yeah, suck me, pump me faster…”

           The Young Master did as he was told. He sucked harder and pumped faster, trying to keep up with his hand on his own but failed because he was beginning to enjoy tasting Remus’ cock a little more than he should.

           “I’m…I’m close…I’m gonna come soon…” Remus groaned, his stomach pit tightened into impossible knots.

           Draco pulled out but continued stroking him, moving even faster than before. That did it for Remus.

           “I’m…I’m coming!”

           Quickly the older man held onto the table for support as he squirted his load. Draco closed his eyes to avoid getting an eyeful and Remus, before he knew it, came all over the boy’s face. As he slowly recovered from his tremors, his mind cleared and he opened his eyes to see in horror what he had done.

           “Oh, I’m…I’m sorry, Young Master. I didn’t mean to…”

           “It’s OK,” Draco said as he licked his lips, tasting the salty cum that trickled near while wiping his eyelids so that he could open them. “Did you like it?”

           “You were very good for a beginner. Practice makes perfect,” Remus replied as he knelt in front of Draco to clean the cum off his face. His gaze shifted towards Draco’s hard-on sticking out of his pants and said, “You still haven’t come on your part, eh, Young Master?”

           “I…I didn’t think I would get hard again…” Draco blushed.

           “Giving blowjobs tend to be arousing sometimes, Young Master. Do you want me to fix that for you?” Remus was about to reach down to stroke him when Draco put his hand on his, stopping him.

           “Remus?”

           “Yes, Young Master?”

           “Call me Draco please?”

           Remus was taken aback. “A…Are you sure…? I mean, you’re my Young Master…Honorary titles should be…”

           “Yes,” Draco replied, interrupting his rambling. “But I want you to be with me because you want to, not because I am your Master. It makes it feel so…hollow.”

           Remus blushed as he heard this. He could never imagine that his secret unrequited love would be returned like this. If he didn’t take this chance now he would never ever get it again. It was now or never as he leaned his face against Draco’s shoulder, hiding his shyness.

           “I’ve been meaning to…to tell you for…for 3 long years now. I…I’ve been having feelings for you…ever since your father bought me from the auction and…introduced me to you and your mother. I know it’s not my place to…to fall in love with my Master but…I…I can’t help it…”

           “I like you too since the first day you were assigned to me as a personal slave,” Draco said as he put a comforting hand on Remus’ head. “I don’t know if it is love. All I know is that I want to be with you all the time.”

           “Then it’s love enough…” Remus whispered as he kissed Draco, slowly reaching over to pump Draco’s neglected cock.

           Draco whimpered in his mouth, holding onto to Remus for dear life as he shivered and wriggled, thrusting slightly in Remus’ hand. Remus left a few love bites on Draco’s neck before advancing to the nipples, drawing teasing circles around them and sucking them in intervals, while his hand continued to stroke and pump his length.

           “Remus,” Draco moaned. “I feel like I am on fire…”

           “Then I shall melt you down, my dear Draco,” Remus smirked as he laid Draco on the ground and took his cock into his mouth, swallowing him whole.

           Draco clawed at the wooden floor, trying to suppress his moans and groans that were threatening to come out in high volume. In the background, he could hear voices incoming towards the stable. One of them sounded like Tyler, his personal horse-riding teacher. Remus thought he had heard something as well, but he was too busy and aroused to care. All he wanted was to send his beloved Young Master into euphoric bliss. He continued to blow him while stroking himself at the same time.

           “P-Please, Remus…” Draco begged, not sure whether to stop this blissful torture or not.

           Remus deep-throated him, taking his entire length into his mouth and licked wherever he could reach, humming in ecstasy. By now the voices were getting closer as the vibration from Remus’ humming made Draco explode into Remus’ throat for the second time. He bit his lips so as not to scream his lover’s name for fear of alerting the incoming strangers’ attention. By the time Draco was done shooting his load, Remus could hear the voices a lot clearer and those voices definitely belonged to Tyler the horse-riding teacher, the stable boy and the horse-trainer. He swallowed as quickly as possible before carrying Draco and their clothes to hide behind Salazar, one of Draco’s favourite horses.

           “So, what do you think about the horse we just saw at the market?” Tyler asked as he entered the stable, followed by the rest.

           “I dunno,” the horse trainer replied. “I think it’s gonna be too wild to be put in a stable and be ridden for domestic use. Young Master Malfoy would get hurt riding it.”

           “But then again, isn’t that your job to break a horse?” the stable boy asked as he passed by Salazar, petting its head as he went. Draco was panting hard and shaking from the orgasm, trying to lean on Remus for support. Remus held his breath as he hugged the trembling Draco close to his chest, willing them to leave and hoping that Salazar’s size would be enough to hide the both of them.

           “True, but that horse is a little too much to break for that. I heard from the trader that the horse had never come close to human civilization until now. It took almost 5 men just to capture it and about three shots of tranquilizer serum to calm it down. It might be too wild.”

           “Guess it should be put down then,” Tyler commented as he took out a carrot to a random horse. “Speaking of traders, we should consider selling some of the horses here. Our prized stallions are kinda overpopulating our stables now. We can’t hold anymore horses.”

           “I’ll discuss this matter with Master Malfoy then,” the stable boy said. “He should know a few people who are willing to take some of our horses off our hands.”

           “Good,” the horse trainer agreed, leading the men out of the stables. “I’ll go with you to talk to him. Vouching for you would help resolve matters faster…”

           The two lovers who were desperate to keep their presence unknown waited patiently until they were completely alone before they sighed in relief.

           “That was close,” Remus said as he helped his Young Master and lover put on his clothes. Draco nodded and leaned up to kiss him.

           “Do you think Father would sell you if we were found out just now?”

           “I don’t know. I hope not. Technically my job is to baby-sit you and satisfy their kinky sexual desires. Nothing else mattered or allowed. Master and Mistress really have insatiable sexual appetites sometimes. It’s a wonder I could keep up with them.”

           “Does Father…and you…” Draco gulped, unable to imagine what went on behind his parents’ closed doors.

           “Master and Mistress call me almost every night to their room to do outrageous things,” Remus sighed and nodded. “Sometimes…yes, your father fucks me while I fuck your mother.” Remus frowned and shut his eyes tight when he said that, traumatized at the horrible thought.

           “I wished it didn’t happen,” Draco replied, near to tears as he cupped his face. “I want you all to myself. I want you only in my bed.”

           “It can’t be helped, I’m afraid. Your father bought me. I belong to him for as long as he’s still interested in me. As much as I hate this, and I really am very tired of this job, I can't leave. I don't have a choice. Tonight may be no different.”

           “Remus, you said you love me, right?” Draco asked as he held the older man’s face in his hands.

           “More than anything in the world.”

           “Then think about me when they call you,” Draco said as he pulled him down for a kiss. “Think of me when they have sex with you. Pretend it is with me. Can you do that?”

           “I’ll try,” Remus replied as he kissed the boy back passionately. “I promise I’ll try.”


	5. Chapter 5

            Lucius Malfoy, the man of the Malfoy manor, was in his study, smoking his pipe while reading the Daily Prophet, occasionally sipping his tea. There were no pressing matters to attend to in the Ministry, so he got off work early to relax for the rest of the day. Besides, he had a guest to entertain at home today and he wanted to be there before he did.

            Moments later, a knock was heard on the door. Lucius removed the pipe from his mouth and allowed the person to enter. It was no other than his son Draco Malfoy.

            “Hello, Father,” Draco said as he came in.

            “To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, son?” Lucius asked, curious as to why his son would see other than when he was summoned to.

            “Well…” Draco hesitated for a moment before saying, “I have thought about what I want for my birthday.”

            “Really? And what may that be?”

            Draco took a deep breath. He was almost 15, and he believed he was entitled for this. The moment of truth was now or never.

            “I want Remus as my personal sex slave.”

            Lucius raised an eyebrow. His son wanting his favourite sex slave who gave him pleasurable sex every night and entertained his every whim and fancy? That would definitely not do.

            “You're just a child. You can't have a sex slave yet.”

            “Why not? I will be 15 soon.”

            “You’re still too young to be interested in sex. You should be interested in other things, like friends, for example,” Lucius replied, trying to discourage his son with his authoritative voice. “Besides, Remus is my slave. He belongs to me. I bought him with my own money. I’m not just going to give him away just like that.”

            “I am not too young. I know what sex is and I have seen you fucking a few slaves,” Draco said, clenching his fists to give him some strength. “I have friends that are my friends because we are supposed to, not because we want to.”

            Lucius slammed his newspaper down and glowered at his son. One thing he didn’t like was insubordination, even more so when he was getting it from his own son.

            “Don't you dare give me that tone, young man. I am your father and as long as you live in this house, you _will_ respect me, understand?”

            “Sorry, Father,” Draco replied, lowering his head.

            “What is this interest with you to Remus anyway?”

            “I just like him...I like his ass, it looks....nice,” Draco made up an excuse. He didn’t want to tell his father that in truth, he had fallen in love with Remus and wanted Remus inside him as soon as possible and have him all to his own.

            Lucius considered for a moment. It’s true that his son was old enough to begin appreciating—or even be remotely curious—about sex, and he had to admit, he had gotten slightly bored with his sex slave, even though he did entertain him well. Narcissa was occasionally complaining that Remus was a little too easy to break and she needed someone more resistant to increase the excitement, and he had to agree with his wife that Remus was beginning to play along with their nightly games a little too quickly, just like their previous sex slaves. It was time to get another younger slave anyway; Remus was getting on in the age department. And technically he wouldn’t be exactly leaving them. He would be within sight and he could ravish him anytime he wants, and he was sure Draco would not interfere or argue with him. After all, no matter who bought the slave, the slave would always be public property and be played around as they see fit. With an inexperienced boy like his son, he’s sure Remus would be searching for other ways to match up his tastes and would probably come crawling back to them. But that doesn’t mean he would let him off for free. His son needed to learn the value of business after all…

            “Very well,” Lucius agreed. “You can have him for your birthday, but on one condition.”

            “Yes?” Draco looked up, casting a wary eye at his father.

            “I can see that you haven’t been…‘broken into’ yet, and since my favourite sex slave is going to be the one to make you a man, I want to watch. You will, after all the guests have returned home, take Remus to our room and let me and your mother watch while he makes a man out of you. Do you agree to these terms?”

            “Y…Yes, Father,” Draco silently gulped and nodded, hiding his freaking out face behind a calm, stoic façade.

            “Good,” Lucius smirked and took Draco’s chin, leaning towards him until their noses touched and said in a seductive husky tone, “I look forward to your birthday soon,” then pulled his face back and spoke casually, “You may leave. I’m expecting your godfather today.”

            He then let go and went back to reading his papers as if this conversation had never took place. Draco excused himself and walked out of the study. As soon as he was out, his whole body shook like a leaf and nearly ran to his room, ignoring his godfather who came at the opposite direction and slammed the door closed before burying his head in his pillow, crying his eyes out. He should’ve known his father would never give away a freebie. He knew he would try to squeeze out any bargain he could get his hands on. That was his father. Always has been, always will be.

            Severus, on the other hand, was surprised that Draco just ran past him without greeting him. Judging from the direction he came from, he could tell that his godson must’ve had another failed attempt to outsmart his father. Nothing too strange about that. It was best that he didn’t mention it. He went up to the study and knocked the door.

            “Come in,” Lucius’ voice rang from the other side. Severus opened the door and entered.

            “Hello, Lucius,” Severus greeted him and sat in front of his desk.

            “Ah, my favourite member of the family,” Lucius said as he poured a cup of tea for Severus. “Glad you could join me for tea.”

            “And how are you, Lucius? You do not usually call me till the weekend.”

            “Well, to be honest,” Lucius said as he took a sip of tea. “I’m just a little curious about your slave. I haven’t heard from you since you bought him. How did it go with him?”

            “He likes wine and loves sex when he is intoxicated, apparently,” Severus sighed. “But I feel guilty. He is just a child.”

            “I know,” Lucius smirked smugly. “About 12 years and 3 months old to be exact.”

            “A child,” Severus glared at him. “How about you try fucking your son? Wait, never mind, wrong question. You just might.”

            “Are you not curious as to wonder how I know about him?”

            “That is my next question. How do you know?”

            Lucius grinned and accio-ed a bunch of paperwork that was stashed in a file drawer across the room and dropped it on the desk in front of Severus, “Bought this for 15 Galleons from the slaver who keeps records of their slaves. Turns out his parents were school celebrities back in the days and had been doing a lot of good services to the community when they were alive. You might know them. They were known as James Potter and Lily Evans, our Hogwarts Homecoming King and Queen as the Muggles would put them. A man they assisted the Aurors to arrest named Tom Marvolo Riddle escaped Azkaban and assassinated them. It's all in there.”

            “I see,” Severus noted as he took the papers, remembering vaguely about a Gryffindor boy who had blue eyes behind thin-framed glasses and always holding a Snitch and had really messy hair and a Gryffindor girl who had green eyes, red hair and always seen either with a book or with the boy or both. “So his uncle and aunt Mr. and Mrs. Dudley sold him.”

            “Yes. Apparently after taking the boy in, they didn’t bother to send him to school and treated him like a servant, doing the housework and picking up after them. Never taught him to read or write and was not allowed to speak either, so his speech ability is lacking in that area. If I’m not mistaken, they actually whacked his throat or hit the back of his neck whenever he tried to voice out his mind, so that internal wound must’ve worsened his speech impediment. When his uncle went bankrupt and was left with only the clothes on their backs, they sold him with he was 11 years old to a slave hunter for a measly 14,000 Sickles. Rather cheap, don’t you think?”

            “Another question. Why did you look it up?”

            “Why? I just thought you wanted to know, is all. I always do background checks on my slaves, just in case they’ve contracted any disease or whatnot, or to blackmail with if they disobey me, especially if they came from a dark past. Thought I'd do the same for my favourite family member. So does he really not know how to talk?”

            “He can say ‘Nummy’, which I think is ‘Yummy’ and the word ‘Fuck’.”

            Lucius snorted upon hearing that, almost choking in his tea.

            “You should do that more,” he said with a small grin, sipping his tea.

            “I suppose he learnt that word from one of his clients. He has only been in the business for a year, in which he had serviced almost 5 men in that year.”

            “And now I make number 6. I am not going to do it again to him. He should be treated like a human being, not an animal,” Severus said grimly, even though his whole body craved it.

            “You say it, but I know you will give in again. It's like that with sex slaves. Until you're really, truly tired of them, you'll ravish them again and again. You're known to be a little weak in the temptation department when you’re younger, Severus, especially with the juniors in school…”

            “Thank you, ‘Mother’,” Severus groaned, interrupting Lucius. “That is not what I wanted to hear.”

            Lucius chuckled, “It’s just so fun to tease you every now and then, puts a bit of emotion on that porcelain face of yours.”

            “Sure,” Severus raised an annoyed eyebrow before taking another sip of tea. “So how many are coming to Draco’s party this year?”

            “Almost the entire Ministry of Magic will be here, including Crabbe and Goyle and his kids. Of course, you're invited. Bring the little slave along. Everyone's bringing theirs.”

            “As long as he is not touched. If the same thing happens like last time with the ‘adult’s party’, I will strangle you.”

            “Wasn't my fault Black decided to bottoms up on the vodka and have a strip tease in the middle of the room.”

            “I will not let him take my pet. Harry is mine and mine alone.”

            “Possessive, aren't we?” Lucius grinned, giving him a mischievous look. “Humph. You’ll get tired of him soon enough, just like I did with my other slaves.”

            “Lucius, the last sex slave I had, I had him for over 16 years.”

            “And that's a record, considering the rest only lasted for no more than a year, and that was before the Ministry adopted the Muggle human labour rights rule—making slavery partially illegal—and before those poor little creatures were driven to extinction,” Lucius sighed. “Still thinking about the last slave?”

            “He never loved me. I had to let him free.” Severus sighed. He hadn’t seen him in about three years now and it hurt him occasionally to think about him. “Unlike you, Lucius, I want my slave to love me.”

            “How could a slave love their master?” Lucius said in disgust. “It's so ungodly wrong. Love is such a superficial thing, more so when it's between a slave and a master. I don’t know what your obsession is over this.”

            “I know you don’t, Lucius. You are too shallow to figure it out. I want one person to spend the rest of my life with. Not a string of mindless slaves only wanting to please me because I am their master.”

            “Have it your way,” Lucius sighed, tired of arguing with his god-brother of the same issue over and over again. He had always been the most stubborn git among them. “You’ve always been the eccentric in the family anyway. Just remember to bring your slave to the party. It'll do the kid good to know slaves other than himself and you.”

            “Yes, you are true on that,” Severus agreed as he drained his tea. He took the bunch of paperwork with him and said, “I must be going. I don't want to leave him alone too long.”

            “Very well then,” Lucius replied as he got up. “I’ll see you to the door.”

            Lucius accompanied Severus to the front door in comfortable silence. When he opened the door for Severus to leave, he remembered something.

            “Oh, Severus.”

            “Yes?” Severus turned back to face his god-brother.

            “Another thing you should know. That slave you have. He’s been given a concealment spell to retain his quality and get a higher price off him, but if you remove it, you will see the scar on his forehead that was caused by that Riddle convict when he tried to kill him. Nearly did, his broken skull almost made him bleed to death, but he survived. I’m sure you can undo a simple concealment spell, don’t you?”

            “I was better at Charms than you, remember?” Severus smiled smugly and walked off, leaving Lucius to huff in defeat and walk back into the house.

\--:--

            “Harry?”

            Once he was home, the first thing he did was call his pet. It was almost nightfall when he came home, but a little earlier than the usual time Harry had to wait for him in the front door, so he resorted to looking for his little slave.

            After a moment of searching, he found Harry at the rose garden at the backyard, picking petals off the blood red roses. Severus smiled and went to him.

            “Hello, Harry.”

            Harry turned to see and smiled, “Mah!” Apparently, he was trying to say ‘Master’ but could only go as far as that.

            “Having fun?” he asked, coming out and sitting on a chair outside.

            Harry responded by picking up the bundle of petals he plucked out of other roses and threw them upwards, making fall on him like confetti and giggled.

            “No, Harry, don't pick the petals off,” Severus sighed, a mental image of the head gardener going ballistic over the totaled garden. “There will be no more flowers.”

            “Oh,” Harry replied, giving him an ‘I’m sorry’ pout.

            “Come here, pet,” Severus smiled and gestured him to come near him, in which the boy did shyly.

            “Mah?”

            “Do you remember last night?”

            Harry thought hard for a while, then shook his head.

            Severus frowned, “Do you remember anything after dinner?”

            Harry thought again, then remembered the wine he was given and smiled, “Nummy~!”

            “OK, after the yummy wine?”

            The boy thought again, trying to recall the events after that, but couldn’t get any and shook his head hard.

            Severus sighed in relief. _It’s for the best, I suppose,_ he thought before voicing out, “Alright. Are you hungry? It is almost dinner, but you need a bath hanging out in the garden all day.”

            Harry smiled and followed behind his Master as he was led to the bathroom. There, Severus turned on the water to make a lukewarm bath and told Harry to undress while he got the soap ready. Harry obeyed, taking off all his clothes and stood there waiting in all its naked wonder. As soon as the tub is full, he turned the taps off and gestured the boy to get in, in which he did so, looking up expectantly at his Master with his sparkling innocent jade-green eyes. Severus bit his lip, trying very hard not to look at Harry’s enticing body as his own body began to spring to life with lust.

            “Wash up nicely. I will be in the other room,” he said as he quickly made his way to get out of the bathroom, entering his own room and breathed deep to get control of his erection that was threatening to break out of its confines. Quickly, he sent for Colin to get the dinner ready before going back to his room to wait for his pet. _Damn it,_ he cursed to himself. _Why do you have to look so wonderful and seductive, pet? I don’t want to take you against your will again._

            Harry, still in the bathroom, was surprised at Severus’ reaction, but didn’t think much of it as he shrugged and started cleaning himself from head to toe; scrubbing off whatever dirt he caught during his day in the garden. He knew he wasn’t supposed to be in the garden unless Neville required him because the head gardener particularly did not like him because of his petal-plucking fetish, but he was in a naughty mood today and since the head gardener had taken ill and left Neville in charge of the garden for the day, he managed to slip away and plucked at the rose petals all day long. He liked plucking roses the best. Even though the stems were thorny, the petals were big, red and beautifully soft, and he enjoyed the feel of it between his fingers as he plucked it off one by one. He knew he would get in trouble for this once the head gardener got better, but at the moment, he didn’t really feel bothered by it.

            Once he was done, he cleaned himself off the soap, then stepped out of the bathroom totally wet and naked, calling for his Master. Severus poked his head back in and sucked in a breath seeing Harry glistening wetly under the light of the bathroom.

            “Wha…What is it, pet?” Severus stumbled in his words.

            “Mah!” Harry twirled around, showing off his wet body, trying to tell him that he was done bathing.

            “Yes, very nice. Uh, dry off and come out here," Severus sighed and pulled back. Lucius was right: he was never going to make it.

            Harry looked for a towel, grabbed it and dried himself before wrapping himself with it and came to Severus.

            “Mah?”

            “Good, pet. Let’s get you dressed before dinner,” Severus said, looking for something for his pet to wear, not looking at him.

            Harry felt something wrong about Severus and pulled at his sleeve tentatively, giving him a questioning look.

            “It’s nothing, Harry,” Severus assured him as he gave him an underwear and a huge T-shirt with a tribal drawing on the front. It used to belong to the previous slave—who was a Muggle, by the way—that he had loved and cared for 16 long years, but since his love remained unrequited and he had disappeared from his life for good, he didn’t see any harm giving it to Harry. Besides, the usual servant clothes Harry wore that he got from the hired help was a little…unbecoming on him.

            Finally Severus could look at him as soon as he was dressed. It ran all the way past Harry’s knees when he put it on because it was meant for adults, and he couldn’t help feeling that Harry looked so cute in it. But he could tell from Harry’s expression that the boy was still wondering about what he did wrong that made his Master behaved in such a way.

            _It is best if you don’t know, pet. It is best if you had no idea what you had been through with a beast like me…_

            “Ready for dinner, Harry?”

            Harry smiled and nodded. Severus then took Harry’s hand and led him to the dining room to eat. Harry went pink as he felt Severus’ hand on him, wondering why his Master was so out of sorts today and wondering why he was following him instead of rushing to the kitchen to prepare dinner for him, but quickly brushed it all away as he saw the food already prepared on the table.

            “Nummy~!” Harry grinned.

            “Yes, but no wine tonight. It’s all for me,” Severus said as he sat down and tucked Harry onto his lap. Harry pouted when he heard his Master said that he wouldn’t get any wine, but did not complain. His Master’s words were law, after all.

            _It’s for your own good,_ Severus thought as he started feeding the boy and himself. Harry ate whatever his Master spoon-fed without complain, but would occasionally look at the wine glass with longing whenever Severus took a sip from it. Severus’ fingers itched to feed some for Harry, but he steeled his willpower not to. The boy’s innocence was at stake here.

            “Mah?” After a long silence, Harry looked up to his Master, seemingly wanting to say something.

            “Yes, pet?”

            Quite suddenly, Harry gave him his biggest smile, giving him a look that said ‘Thank you so much, Master’ before leaning his head against his shoulder, almost purring like a little kitten.

            “Oh…” Severus got the idea, his heart overwhelmed with bliss. He smiled genuinely for the first time in so many years and ran his hand through Harry’s hair, bringing him closer both heart and soul.

            “I am glad you are here with me, pet.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember, this is AU. We created this out of a whim. In this universe, Remy and Siri never knew each other. Let’s just say that Remy had always been in the sex slave business and never went to Hogwarts, just like Harry right now. Thus the Marauder history portrayed here will be quite different

            A few people were hanging about at the Grand Hall of the Malfoy manor, making small talk with each other as they waited for the main event. Following by their sides were a couple of slaves each that were ordered to sit at a corner while they chit-chatted, and the slaves took this opportunity to talk to each other and get to know each other as well. They were all waiting for the birthday boy and the master of the ceremony to appear while the servant walked around pouring drinks and serving finger food while the mistress of the house walked about entertaining each and every one of them while they waited.

            Draco was in his room looking at the mirror, taking deep breaths and trying to calm himself for the party, although he knew the focus wouldn’t exactly be on him but on his father. He knew long enough in his whole life as a Malfoy that there was no genuine relationship between those associated to his family, only acquaintances or profit-based connections hidden behind a façade of forced sincerity and generosity. His father was one of the most powerful and prominent figures in the Ministry and everyone wanted to be on his good side, and he knew his father wanted nothing more than to wrap all those bastard up around his little finger, relishing the thought of stringing them up like marionettes and do them away as long as he sees amusement in playing God at their fate. There was never once a gathering in his household that had nothing to do with kissing his father’s ass and licking his boots to curry his favour. Today would probably be no different.

            His father’s words about the condition he had to comply in order to receive his birthday gift continued to linger in his mind. He still couldn’t believe that his own father would ask such an atrocious request, but he knew that if he did not comply, he would not get what he wanted. _A Malfoy always gets what he wants, no matter what it takes,_ he remembered his father often reminded him the old family adage, and he knew his father _always_ got what he wanted. He didn’t want to imagine what his father did to get to the top of the Ministry food chain, but if he himself were to rip Remus off his lecherous sadistic father’s arms and keep him all to himself for the rest of his life, he had to do whatever it takes.

            A knock on the door soon brought him out of his muse. He quickly pulled his hair back and tried to adjust it as smoothly as possible before letting whoever it was outside in. It was none other than Remus, coming in to bring the suit he needed to wear for his birthday party downstairs.

            “Your clothes are here, Young Master,” Remus said. “I made sure they were pressed and dressed as perfectly as possible.

            “Close the door,” Draco ordered, in which he did so. His voice slowly faltered as soon as they were alone in their own privacy. “Remus…”

            Remus could tell from the tone that there was something going on. He quickly set the clothes aside and knelt at Draco’s feet, “What is it, Draco?”

            “Father, he…” Draco sniffed, not letting his tears fall. He had to be strong for this. He smiled wryly and said, “Father had agreed to my request. I get to have you for my birthday.”

            Remus was shocked, “I…I don’t know what to say…I’m…I’m surprised that you would even ask him for me…”

            “That’s not only it…” Draco said hesitantly, pausing for a while before continuing, “Will…Will you…I mean…go gentle on me tonight, please?”

            “W…What do you mean? I don’t understand,” Remus asked, confused.

            “Father is willing to give you to me on one condition,” Draco took a shaky breath, “He wants you to make me a man and…he wants to watch it along with Mother. That means we…have to have sex in front of them.”

            Remus felt like his head had been hit by a mallet as he sank to the floor, going pale. How could he? He knew his Master was cruel, but he didn’t think he would do this to his own son! He didn’t mind being humiliated by him, but his own son?! Was it so important to put a price on everything he owned? Anger and agony crept into his heart as he gripped his fists and slammed them onto the ground, repulsed by his Master’s atrocity.

            “How…How could he…?!”

            “But…I get you. That’s all it matters. As long as I get you, I don’t care what happens to me,” Draco said, running his hand through Remus’ chocolate-brown hair.

            “But…But I have to defile you in front of them…”

            “Try not to say it that way,” Draco sighed. “I trust you.”

            Remus closed his eyes, trying to regain composure. If he had to do whatever his Master wanted in order to be free from him, he would at least give it his best for his lover.

            “I will try to make you feel pleasurable,” Remus said as he hugged his Young Master. “I promise.”

            After hugging for a few moments, Draco tried to smile cheerfully and tore himself gently away from Remus.

            “Help me change?”

            Remus didn’t need to be asked twice.

\--:--

            More people began to crowd their way to the Grand Hall and into the party, bringing along their servants and slaves. All of them gave their best wishes to Draco, who kept to the sides of the room, before walking off to schmooze their way into Lucius’ heart (and possibly his wallet). The birthday boy wanted nothing more than to be left alone, only occasionally hanging out with his so-called friends like Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy Parkinson, his ‘trophy girlfriend’.

            Draco had built a rather high reputation of being one of the brightest (and richest) students of Hogwarts and most influential next his father in the Ministry, and had been the most prominent and popular member of the Slytherin House who is sort of the ‘bread winner’ when it comes to earning points for his house. And of course, everyone in Slytherin, sometimes even from other houses, wanted to get on his good side as his father had always been the major voice of the Ministry, and girls and gay boys alike are most definitely wanting to be his ‘trophy sweetheart’ so that they could have the share of the Malfoy inheritance and live a life of pure wealth and high status. No matter how tired he was of pretending to be high and mighty in school, he had a reputation to keep. The Malfoy family demanded it. So, in order to do the family proud, he kept Crabbe and Goyle as his loyal lackeys by his side due to their slightly well-off background (most probably because Lucius was paying their fathers high sums to make their sons keep an eye on him) and chose Pansy Parkinson as his ‘trophy girlfriend’ not only because of her looks, but also because her mother, who was just as rich as their family, was in his mother’s Secret Wives Club (he definitely didn’t want to know what’s so ‘secret’ about it) and was a very dear childhood friend to his mother. Besides, he needed someone to keep the other hormone/money-crazed losers away from him and needed her to satisfy his lust while he secretly pined for Remus from afar.

            Now that he knew he was going to get his birthday present anytime soon, and the deal that went with it, he was getting more and more nervous by the moment, and his friends and his ‘trophy girlfriend’ no longer became the issue of his concern. All he wanted was right there, waiting behind closed doors. He felt both excited and scared to face what was coming to him.

            Meanwhile, amidst all the adults, Severus was sitting on a big chair at the far end of the room with Harry on his lap. He had not let the boy off his lap the whole time, and depended on passing by servants to bring him the party food. Even when he went to the bathroom, he brought Harry with him. He refused to leave the boy from his sight no matter what, and only allowed the people to see him but not touch, and secretly took pride in the people speaking highly of how obedient and quiet his little slave was sitting there without even moving an inch or uttering a peep without his Master’s orders. He never moved from his seat and wouldn’t want to participate in any of the other guests’ conversation. All he needed was Harry on his lap. No one else mattered.

            Which wasn’t a bad thing if Harry’s presence hadn’t been helping his erection much.

            Harry, on the other hand, didn’t mind staying on Severus’ lap. He knew no one there and he didn’t recognize any of the slaves that were gathered at one corner talking amongst themselves. Even if he wanted to join them, he wouldn’t know how to talk to them anyway. He managed to catch a glimpse of the birthday boy who was surrounded by kids his age, and he had to admit he looked very pretty for a boy. He imagined that if he were as old as his Master, he would definitely look exactly like his blonde father who was going around entertaining the other guests. For once Harry was wearing something decent: a long-sleeved navy green shirt with an earth-green vest to match, a pair of dark-blue jeans and a pair of clean white socks. He didn’t wear any shoes though because Severus insisted on carrying him. His Master wouldn’t even think of letting him on the ground for fear of lecherous hands reaching over to touch him. He could feel something bulging under his thighs where he sat on Severus’ lap, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out that his Master was being ‘excited’. He stole a look at Severus warily, wondering if he was ‘excited’ because of him or because of someone else in the room. He was about to ask when someone with long, wild hair and feisty handsome looks came over to him with a sort of child-like naughtiness in the air.

            “Well, well, well, if it ain't Snivellus finally decided to come out of his cave and join the living!”

            Severus glared coldly at him. Sirius Black. The last person he’d want to see.

            “And if it isn’t Black. Planning on getting drunk again? I expect your ass was killing you last time. Or maybe you love it?” Severus said as he petted his slave’s head, not exactly looking at him.

            Obviously, those words offended Sirius as he reached over to grab him by the collar, only to be stopped by Lucius who got there just in time.

            “Now, now, boys. Play nice. It’s my son’s birthday. I won’t have any violence and people behaving like uncivilized barbarians around here.”

            “We were just catching up on a little old times, Luc,” Sirius replied as he tore off his hand from Lucius’ grip. “Nothing to it.”

            “Good. Now I know you guys go way back and have a lot of unpleasant moments between each other, but those were the young and reckless days. Let’s keep it behind us and act a little level-headed, shall we?”

            “If you say so,” Severus muttered.

            “Yeah, whatever,” Sirius grumbled. His eyes soon cast towards Harry sitting on Severus’ lap and exclaimed, “Well, I’ll be darned! Isn’t that Potter’s kid?”

            “Could be,” Severus put his hand on Harry’s leg. “What is it to you, Black?”

            “No, seriously, Snivellus. That,” Sirius said as he pointed at Harry, “is our James Potter's son! You know James Potter from school, don’tcha?”

            “We’ve learnt that he is school celebrities James Potter and Lily Evans’ son,” Lucius replied as he briefly described Harry’s background and how he ended up becoming a slave. “Wait, weren’t you with James Potter during school? The Marauders’ Group as you called it? You used to give Severus a really hard time then.”

            “I know. Me a.k.a. Padfoot, Lily a.k.a. Moony, Peter Pettigrew a.k.a. Wormtail and James a.k.a. Prongs. Those were the days. But I stopped talking to him ever since he stole Lily away from me in 5th year. We disbanded soon after. Poor Wormtail had to belong in some group so badly that he went and join that crazy Riddle guy on some crazy manslaughter. Glad he and the Riddle guy did him away good and dead. Never really liked his guts anyway. Big show-off and all with his fancy Quidditch gimmicks and all that…”

            “I didn’t like him anymore than you do either, Black,” Severus interrupted Sirius’ rambling, “but that is not the point. Now run along Black, I think I see a bottle with your name on it.”

            “You know,” Sirius rubbed his chin with interest and eyed eagerly at Harry, “For the son of my enemy, you grew up pretty cute. I saw you once as a 1-year-old toddler at your birthday party before all the buzz about their murder happened. Nice ol’ Lily thought it would be nice to invite me for old times’ sake, but of course I still didn’t talk to that old backstabber one bit. You’ve gotten really beautiful. Must’ve got it from your mother, eh? Especially the eyes…”

            He was about to reach out to take Harry’s chin to take a closer look when Severus, in a flash, grabbed Sirius’ hand.

            “Touch him and you never have that hand again,” he growled, his other hand tightening on Harry's leg.

            “Geez, Snivellus!” Sirius huffed as he flicked Severus’ hand off him. “You’re uptight as always. Humph! Who cares about that Potter spawn anyways?”

            “Do you have to be so anti-social, Severus?” Lucius sighed as he watched Sirius walking over to the bar and ordered a strong drink.

            “He will not touch what is mine,” Severus stated.

            “Very well, have it your way. I suggest you be ready with your present. The gift-giving is about to start.”

            As Lucius walked away, Harry shivered a little. He thought his Master was going to have a brawl with Sirius when he grabbed the other man’s hand—and personally, he felt a sort of foreboding aura on the wild-haired handsome man—but sighed in relief when nothing happened. There was just something about Sirius that he did not really like, and his heart almost jumped out of his chest when he reached over to touch him, but thankfully his Master was there to stop him. He clung onto Severus’ coat, looking up at him timidly, “Mah?”

            “Shh, it’s alright, Harry. I will not let anyone touch you, pet,” Severus promised as he kissed his head, making the boy giggle.

            An hour later, people started giving their presents to Draco. Draco accepted them graciously and opened them one by one. He got a lot of meaningless things like journals, which he had 50 of, books, brooms, robes, trinkets and such. The only original gift he ever got was a rare plant of the Scotland locks from his godfather Severus, which was helped given by his slave Harry with a cute, timid smile and a small blush across his face. _So this is the slave Father’s been talking about,_ Draco thought as he took the gift from Harry’s hands and patted his head, smiling to himself as the little boy tottered quickly back into Severus’ arms. He had heard his parents gossiping about Severus during one dinner night, about how infatuated he was to a mere common sex slave and how silly it was for his godfather to put his emotions over one small boy who barely even understand the meaning of love and its superficiality, and Draco silently listened to all this while his heart was repulsed by their bad-mouthing, but one look at Harry who quietly gave him the plant while flashing what probably was the most brilliant and most innocent smile he had ever seen, he could understand why Severus was so obsessed with him.

            “And now, for my gift,” Lucius voiced out, getting everyone’s attention. Draco’s breath hitched quietly. This was it. The moment of truth. “Since my son is old enough, it’s about time he deserves an adult gift.”

            With that he gestured to a servant to bring the gift in. The servant nodded and disappeared behind a door before leading Remus into the Grand Hall on a leash. Remus was totally naked when he entered, with only a pair of wolf ears worn on his head. Sirius was the first to react as he whistled and clapped at the sight, prompting everyone else except Severus to follow suite. Remus looked as if he was pretty much used to being naked in front of everyone else and didn’t protest when some naughty lecherous hands reached over to grope him, but he dared not to look at Draco in the eye. He felt guilty enough as it is to be in this state in front of his lover. He didn’t want to see Draco’s face to make him feel even guiltier.

            Draco blushed slightly. He didn’t blame Remus one bit to be looking like this, but his heart did ache with jealousy as the lecherous hands continue to grope his slave as he made his way towards him. Lucius took the leash from there and licked Remus’ chin a little before passing it to his son, giving him a knowing look as a reminder of their deal.

            “Thank you, Father,” Draco said as he took the leash, nodding slightly as a cue that he never forgot the deal. How could he? Such an outlandish request was not something to be easily forgotten.

            “Kiss him, man!” Sirius shouted as he poured himself some more bourbon. “Sex slaves gotta kiss their new Masters! It’s initiation, baby!”

            “You can be so devilish sometimes, Black,” Lucius grinned, then turned to his son. “Well, you heard him, boy. Now that you’re his new Master, you should started off by showing him you claim him as your own.”

            “Most definitely,” Draco grinned outwardly in relish, ignoring his ‘trophy girlfriend’ Pansy Parkinson who was whimpering and protesting, only to be held back by her mother with a stern look, but inwardly Draco was disgusted, thinking, _Of course, old man. You would just love a good show, wouldn’t you? A sneak preview of what’s to come._

            So saying, he pulled Remus’ leash to claim his lips, savouring the taste of Remus on his. He tasted of overripe strawberries, probably eating the leftovers in the kitchen before he was set up into this, but secretly he loved every moment of Remus’ tongue slowly parting his lips to kiss him deeper. Remus, on the other hand, could taste shrimp cocktail on him and couldn’t help wanting more of his delectable crevice. They would’ve enjoyed more if there weren’t people watching, whooping and clapping as they whistled their approval. They quickly broke apart before their kiss got anymore enticing and Remus sat right next to Draco’s feet in submission.

            “Typical Black,” Severus grumbled to himself as he watched the display in disgust. “He would love nothing more than to get into other people’s pants and have a free show at the same time.”

            Harry, who was watching Remus and Draco do their thing the whole time, suddenly lit up and seemed to recognize the older man. Hurriedly, he pointed at Remus and exclaimed, “Mah!”

            “What is it, pet?” Severus asked.

            “Mah!” Harry repeated as he kept on pointing at Remus.

            “That slave? Do you know him?”

            Harry couldn’t hold back any longer. He quickly jumped off Severus’ lap and ran to Remus, wrapping his arms around his waist and squealed in delight, taking the older man totally by surprise.

            “Wha…What…? Ha…Harry?”

            Harry squealed again, truly glad that Remus recognized him, nuzzling his face all over Remus’s back.

            “So much for no touching,” Sirius muttered while sipping his bourbon, giving Severus a sneering look. Severus glared back at him before standing up and walking over in a near-run pace.

            “Harry, get back here.”

            Harry instinctively cowered behind Remus, afraid that his Master would tear him away from his long lost friend, which was pretty much what Severus was trying to do.

            “Harry, please, go back to your Master,” Remus urged, but met with the utmost refusal as Harry shook his head hard.

            “How do you know Harry, slave?” Severus demanded.

            “I’m…I’m sorry, sir…” Remus stammered as he tried to pry Harry away from him, all eyes looking at him in curiosity, disapproval or surprise. “We met at the business a few years back before I was bought by Master Malfoy. He…uh…was trained by me for a while…”

            “Trained by you, you say?” Sirius rubbed his chin with interest, a mental image of what sort of ‘training’ Remus had given Harry surfacing in his perverted mind.

            “Shut up, Black!” Severus snapped at him before turning to Remus, taking Harry’s hand. “Come on, Harry.”

            Harry squealed in protest as he resisted Severus’ pull. There was no way his Master was going to separate him from the only friend he had. It had been so long since he seen him and now that he had the chance, he didn’t want to let it go. He shook his head and held onto Remus tight.

            “Harry, obey me. Let go of him.”

            Harry refused to listen, still clinging onto him.

            “Discipline your slave, Severus,” Lucius stepped forward, giving him a warning look. Severus wanted to protest but saw all eyes on him now. He knew then that Lucius was speaking for all the guests who were watching in disapproval.

            “Harry,” Severus called his name again in a warning tone and soon a tug of war ensued. Remus wanted to help but he couldn’t do anything, not with his ex-Master there giving him an annoyed look. All he could do was reluctantly try to pry the little screaming boy off his waist. After some tugging, Severus managed to grab Harry’s arms and pulled him off Remus.

            “Stop this now, Harry, or you are going to get punished.”

            Harry didn’t care. He knew he was supposed to obey his Master but there was Remus right there. He wanted him. He needed him. Somehow at that moment, nothing else mattered, not even his Master. As long as he could get a hold of Remus, everything was either fine or could go to hell. He struggled, flailed and kicked, trying to pull away from Severus’ grasp, desperately reaching for Remus who was holding Draco’s hand, his face filled with uncertainty. Draco also looked torn as whether to let poor Harry come to Remus or leave his godfather to handle the situation.

            “Discipline him or I will do it for you,” Lucius whispered to Severus’ ear, his voice meaning business.

            Severus bit his inner cheek. He didn’t want to do this. He had never resorted to violence to teach Harry and he vowed never to treat Harry any less than a human being. But one look at Lucius’ cold angry eyes and his hand on his snake head rod told him that he was serious. The rod was bound to either bruise the boy or break his bones, and he would never want that to happen. He promised to himself that he would never let anyone touch his pet, not even family. He had to do this. Reaching down, he raised his hand high and slapped Harry hard on his leg.

            “Stop this!”

            That shocked Harry out of his outburst and stopped him abruptly. An uncomfortable silence hung in the hall as Harry widened his eyes in disbelief at his Master. Did Severus just hit him? He had never hit him before. Why was he doing this?

            Severus quickly leaned down and whispered to Harry’s ear, his face a serious look to deceive the guest into believing that he was giving him a harsh warning, “I can arrange you to see him later, but right now you must stop this. You are embarrassing me.”

            Harry’s eyes flared in anger at this betrayal for a moment and glared in contempt at Severus, but seeing Severus’ cold face (which he didn’t know he put on as a front for the guests) and the guests whispered and nodded in approval at Severus’ disciplinary action to Harry, his eyes softened in defeat and stopped resisting. His gaze cast down like an obedient slave, he followed behind Severus back to his seat and didn’t fight when Severus pulled him onto his lap. The atmosphere soon eased down and everyone went back to celebrating the birthday party. Throughout the rest of the party, aside from the occasional chit-chat between the guests and Severus and them looking and studying Harry with non-platonic interest, Harry didn’t want to look at his Master all night long. He only stared at Remus who was sitting at Draco’s feet serving him whatever party food and drinks he wanted him to get. He longed for Remus to come over and take him away from his Master’s lap but he could tell that Remus was just as powerless as he was over his own Master.

            Severus just sighed and didn’t touch Harry the rest of the night.


	7. Chapter 7

            Everyone had a great time in the party. They managed to drink themselves silly while getting a few favours and sucking up to the master of the house at the same time. Severus left early towards the near end of the party but no one really seemed to notice him gone except Draco and Remus. They were really hoping that the party didn’t turn out the way it did for a moment there, but both of them had no say in the matter. It was all Lucius Malfoy running the show. All they could do was sit there and endure it.

            After the party ended, Lucius gestured Draco and Remus to go to his room while he sent the guests away along with his wife. Draco swallowed quietly and took Remus to his parents’ room by the leash. He was visibly shaking. Remus noticed and made sure no one was looking before he put his hands on his shoulders, assuring him that he's in good hands. Draco turned around and kissed him quickly before going to the bed and pulled something out of the side table drawer. It was a jewelry box that belonged to his mother and he knew she kept most of her unwanted trinkets there. She wouldn’t miss anything if he took out just one.

            After rummaging through the jewelry box and keeping an eye at the door just in case his parents barged in, he fished out an ear-ring made of white gold that had a yellow amber stone studded on it. With a whisper of a spell, he pierced an ear-ring hole on Remus’ right ear and fitted the ear-ring into it.

            “I know you’re allergic to silver, but you don’t really look nice in gold colour, so I’m giving you this one instead,” Draco said as he kissed Remus’ cheek. “It is my vow to you that no matter what happens, my heart will always belong to you.”

            “But…but wouldn’t the Mistress notice it gone?” Remus asked worriedly.

            “Don’t worry,” Draco said as he shook the jewelry box hard before putting it back into the side table drawer. “This is considered like Mother’s jewel trash can. That ear-ring is missing a partner, so I doubt Mother would miss that. I love you, Remus.”

            “And I you, Drake,” Remus replied, calling Draco in his newly pet name, making Draco grin sheepishly.

            Soon, Lucius and Narcissa came into the room, showing that they have already sent all the unwanted guests home and now were ready for some after-party entertainment. Narcissa acted calmly, a faint smile on her face as she followed behind Lucius who was all smiles. Draco could tell from the expression in their eyes that they were more than excited to see their son be manhandled by their ex-slave.

            “Well then, let’s see you become a man, son,” Lucius said as he sat on the couch next to the bed, Narcissa following after shortly, sitting next to him and crossed her legs. Draco closed his eyes and took a deep breath before giving Remus an authoritative look.

            “Undress me, slave.”

            Remus nodded, knowing that his love was just putting up a front and began undressing Draco one by one. Draco had his back to his parents so that they could only get a view of his behind and a clear view of Remus’ face, but the Malfoy couple didn’t mind. It was their last time to see their ex-slave in his sexual manner anyway, so they would love to savour as much of Remus’ naked form as they could. Once Remus took off his pants, he wasn’t sure what to do next. In truth, Draco chose to face them in that position because he couldn’t stand the thought of seeing the excited lust-filled faces (which he knew they would portray) watching them as they did their thing. Nothing was worse than having your parents seeing your demise and actually enjoying it. He shivered, fearing the worse.

            “Allow me, Young Master,” Remus said as he lowered himself to give Draco head. Draco bit his lip, trying not to cry out as he felt the wet heat of Remus’ mouth on him. He could tell that his parents were drawing breaths as they watched Remus blowing Draco, but he tried not to think about them, only concentrating on Remus and his warm mouth bobbing in and out of him, like it was just them two. Draco was right in a way. Lucius was licking his lips in lust as he was watching, his face seemingly wishing that he was participating as well, but the deal was that he and Narcissa would only watch, and he was not someone to break deals that easily.

            Remus then took Draco’s cock whole and bobbed in and out, deep-throating like he used to when they were having their secret meetings in the stable and licking it in intervals just the way he liked it, making Draco arch forward, his hips moving on their own accord.

            “Fuck,” Draco breathed, beginning to actually enjoy this and slightly forgetting his parents’ presence.

            After a few blow-jobs and deep-throating, Remus pulled out to reach over to take out the lube from the other side table where he knew Lucius kept and lathered some onto his fingers. He teased Draco’s opening, drawing circles around the puckered ring of muscles to lube it up while he went back to deep-throating Draco. Hearing Draco moan and whimper as he wriggled a little, wanting more of his fingers, he pushed in one finger, thrusting in and out. Draco squeaked, gripping down on his fingers with his ass as he tensed. It didn’t really hurt, but it definitely felt weird. It was his first time being entered, after all.

            Remus, seeing that his Master and Mistress were getting a little bored, felt worried for Draco’s wellbeing. He mentally apologized to his love as he slipped in another finger, moving in and out as he made a scissoring movement, stretching Draco as gently as he could. Draco widened his eyes and bit back a yelp as he gripped his fists tightly. Now it was hurting and going a little too fast. He made a muffled little whimper as he wondered why Remus suddenly advanced to this so quickly.

            “Just a bit more, Drake. You’ll get used to it,” Remus whispered only for Draco to hear as he continued to move in and out of him, holding him close to his chest. “I’m very sorry, Drake. I have to do this. Your parents are getting impatient.”

            “It’s OK then,” Draco replied just as softly as he could. “I just want it to be over.”

            Remus leaned forward to kiss him, slowly pushing him down on to the bed. Draco closed his eyes, his face totally flushed in red in embarrassment as he could feel again the gazes of his parents. He was right to think so, because Lucius and Narcissa was beginning to lean slightly forward to see what was coming up next.

            Remus began lubing himself up as much as possible so that his insertion later would be easier and less painful. He planted butterfly kisses all over Draco’s face, trying to calm his lover down.

            “Ready, Young Master?”

            “No, not really, but go ahead.”

            “I promise I’ll be gentle,” Remus said as he slowly entered him.

            Draco bit his lip again, closing his eyes tight. _A man doesn’t cry,_ his father always said, and he intended to hold on to those words. Remus tried as hard as he could to move slowly and inched himself deeper into him little by little, praying to Merlin that he didn’t hurt him badly. He could see tears rolling down from under his eyelashes and he could tell that Draco was trying really hard to bear it. Draco felt as if he was being split in half. Try as he might, he could not relax. Draco wondered if this was what Remus had experienced when he lost his virginity. If he didn’t hurt as bad as he was now, he’d actually had time to feel sorry for Remus.

            “It’s OK, Draco. It’s OK. I’m here. Look at me. Focus at my eyes. Look at me.”

            “Just hurry, Remus,” Draco breathed as he put his arms around Remus’ neck.

            “Just focus at my eyes,” Remus whispered as his eyes changed from the usual brown to golden as he slowly pushed himself all the way in. Draco nodded as he looked up, tears staining on his face. Remus’ heart ached as he saw the pain in his love’s eyes and concentrated hard, bringing out the calming effect he had behind his golden eyes as he started thrusting in and out in a steady rhythm.

            Lucius was getting a little aroused seeing Remus thrusting in and out while flashing his golden eyes at his son. It has been a while since he seen those eyes. The first time he saw those eyes was when he tried to force Remus into one of his fetishes. He could tell from the eyes and the growl Remus made as he bared his slightly protruding fangs during that fateful day that he had bought himself a rather interesting sex slave which he could use to his full potential, and ever since he first saw Remus’ change that full moon night, he was even more intrigued to keep him. As he reached down to tease Narcissa under her skirt, not taking his eyes away from them, he began reminiscing the times where he tried to train and break Remus’ changed form. It wasn’t easy, but it was nothing a crack of a whip and a silver rod couldn’t do to subdue him. Though his fetishes hadn’t gone as far as using Remus’ changed form to satisfy his lust, he had other means to use him, especially when it came to ‘disciplining’ his other subjects. Narcissa spread her legs out wider to let her husband more access, seemingly turned on as well by looking at Remus fucking her son. Draco couldn’t help shutting his eyes tight again, trying to shut out the embarrassment of hearing his mother’s muffled moans. He didn’t care what his parents did behind closed doors, but to have it right in front of him was downright wrong.

            “Ignore them, Drake. Look at me,” Remus said as he thrust a little faster, shifting his angle occasionally until he found Draco’s sweet spot and started hitting on it.

            “It’s wrong,” Draco moaned as his hips automatically arched against him at the sweet spot’s assault. “They shouldn’t be here.”

            “I know, but bear with me, OK?” Remus said, putting his palms against Draco to try and dull out their voices as he continued to hit the sweet spot, all the while keeping his relaxing golden gaze on Draco’s silver orbs.

            Draco threw his head back, beginning to engross himself into this indulgence. “Harder. Harder.”

            Remus picked Draco up to make him ride him in his sitting position, aiming deeper and harder at the spot, making Draco see white hot flashes before his eyes. Lucius was getting turned on as well hearing his son moaning and groaning in such an erotic way. He reached down to stroke himself under his pants, but Narcissa swatted it away and did the job for him instead. Draco, on the other hand, kept his hands on Remus’ shoulders, pushing down with all his might, wanting him to pound his sweet spot and send him to oblivion.

            “Faster.”

            Remus did so, thrusting upwards to where it made Draco let out scream after scream of pleasure and his grip on his shoulder tighter, almost digging through and drawing blood. He couldn’t help but enjoy the tight heat surrounding his cock as Draco bobbed up and down as well in time with his thrusts, increasing the pleasure tenfold. Lucius was getting close to coming from his wife’s stroking and the erotic image before him, but Narcissa pulled her hand back at the last minute, shaking her finger as a sign that he had to hold it off for later. He was disappointed and felt as if he was being thrown at with cold water, but he relented anyway. It wouldn’t be much fun if he let off his load and have nothing let for his wife. Both of them continued watching as they teased each other’s different parts of the body instead.

            “Stroke me,” Draco said through gritted teeth at Remus’ ear. “I need to come.”

            “I’m gonna come too…” Remus said as he obeyed his Young Master, reaching down to stroke him.

            “Come inside me, please…” Draco arched his back at his love’s touch, moaning like he had never moaned before in his life.

            “I’m gonna come…I’m coming…!”

            With the other free hand wrapped around Draco’s waist, he immediately let himself go inside the boy, feeling as if he was shooting torrents. Draco came a moment later, splattering his cum all over Remus’ hand and onto Remus’ chest and stomach. After both rode out their tremors, Draco sagged against him, panting as he leaned his head against Remus’ shoulder, while Remus leaned against the bed post, panting just as heavily. Lucius, seeing that the show was over, fixed his pants and got up the couch towards his son, stroking his silver blonde hair.

            “You’ve given us a rather good show. Gather yourselves and leave. Your mother and I have some ‘serious discussion’ to attend to, if you know what I mean.”

            “Unless you’re still good enough to join us,” Narcissa said as she, too, got up and walked to Remus, stroking the slave’s chin. “We don’t mind a little ‘family gathering’.”

            Draco had heard enough. He got his clothes and put them on quickly, leaving his parents to chuckle at his response naughtily. He took Remus’ hand and pulled him out of the room, slamming the door in the process. Once the door was closed and he was a couple of distance away from the room, he leaned against the wall and started to sob, his body going all weak as he slid down to the floor. Remus reached over and held Draco close to chest, rocking him to and fro.

            “Shh, shh, shh… It’s over, Drake. It’s over now. I’m here.”

            “It was horrible…How could they do this to me…? I’m still their son, for Merlin’s sake…How could they do this to me…and to you…?”

            “It’s alright, Drake. I’m here. It’s all that matters.”

            “I know you tried your best to make me feel pleasurable, and I enjoyed every moment I could…but they…they…”

            Remus held him closer, letting his lover cry and sob on his chest, letting it all out. He knew he needed to vent out somehow, and he was willing to provide the comfort he needed. As long as he had Draco to himself, it was alright. No one could ever take this moment away, not even Master and Mistress Malfoy.

            Finally, after crying for a few more minutes, Draco stopped shaking and his sobbing ceased. He sniffled and wiped the tears from his eyes, with Remus helping him lick off the excess tears from his fair cheeks.

            “Let’s go to my room. I need a bath or something. Will you bathe with me, Remus? Make me clean again?”

            “Your wish is my command, love,” Remus said as he carried Draco bridal style, taking them towards Draco’s room.


	8. Chapter 8

           “Harry, come out of there, we need to talk.”

           While all that was happening in the Malfoy manor, Severus was having a hard time of his own with his little pet. Apparently after leaving the party early, Harry would not acknowledge him at all on the way home even though he was seated on Severus’ lap. He didn’t want to reply anything that was asked by Severus and kept his vision to the view outside the carriage window, and as soon as they reached home, he jumped off from Severus’ lap almost immediately and made a mad dash into the house, running past Neville without saying hello and almost knocking the vase of daisies off his hands. He then ran past Colin who was putting out the fire in the fireplace in the dining room and dove straight under the dining table, the tablecloth hiding him out of sight. Being the tiny child he was, it took two bedrooms, the bathroom, the study, the potions lab, the garden and three guest rooms later for Severus to finally chase after Harry looking for him and Colin pointing discreetly at the dining table before leaving them alone.

           “Harry, stop acting like a child and come out, you.”

           Harry pouted and stayed under the table, sticking his fingers in his ears, not wanting to listen whatever his Master was saying.

           “Harry, get out here. If I have to go under there you will be punished.”

           Harry winced, remembering the slap he got on his leg during the party. The phantom sting continued to linger on it, and he definitely did not want to experience it again. After a few moments later, he slowly and reluctantly crawled out of the table to find himself at his Master’s feet. He looked to see Severus there standing before him crossing his arms.

           “Good, now you can sit on the floor if you want. But we need to talk.”

           Harry pouted and sat on the floor, not looking at Severus.

           “You embarrassed me. I raved about what a good pet you were and everyone was beginning to like you. And yet you had to do that. Why did you not obey me?”

           Harry shot him a ‘You know why’ look.

           “I thought I have been good to you. Do you not like me? Do you hate me that much?”

           Harry widened his eyes at his last statement and shook his head hard. That was not what he meant. He never hated Severus. What was his Master trying to imply?

           “Then why? Why did you behave that way?”

           Harry was in a dilemma. He wanted to tell him everything that was going on in his mind, but he didn’t know how. He tried to tell him that he never hated him, that he knew Severus treated him so much better and was given so much freedom than his previous Masters, that he was hurt when Severus whom he thought would never lay a finger on him betrayed his trust and he was only angry because of that, not hate. He tried to tell his beloved Master that he was so happy to see Remus who had been the only person nice to him when he was in the business and he just wanted to rekindle the friendship after so long of being apart, and that he wanted his Master to understand this. He tried to tell him. He really tried. But all that was able to come out of his mouth was “Ah! Ah! Ah!” and nothing else. He was so frustrated that he couldn't put his feelings in words that he cried and sobbed as he slams his fists onto the floor, venting out his frustrations, cursing in his wordless ways how incompetent he felt about unable to communicate properly with his Master when he needed it most. Severus’ heart ached to see Harry berating himself like that and knelt down.

           “Don’t do that, pet. You’ll hurt yourself,” Severus said as he grabbed the boy’s hand before he started bleeding out his knuckles. “I really have to get started with setting up a speech teacher for you.”

           Tears upon tears poured out of his jade-green eyes as he sobbed, desperately speaking through his eye expression, seemingly to say “I’m so sorry, Master…I’m so sorry…” Many months of experience reading Harry’s facial and physical expressions taught him well about what Harry was trying to convey as much as he could. Severus picked him up and sat him on his lap and brought him close to his chest, comforting him with a backrub.

           “Shh, shh, pet. It’s alright. It’s alright. There’s nothing to forgive here. I love you, little one. If I had not slapped you just now, Lucius would have done worse. I did not want you to feel that pain.”

           “Mah…” the boy clung onto Severus as he buried his tear-stained face onto his Master’s chest, sobbing terribly.

           “I didn’t really hurt you, right? Just your feelings?”

           Harry nodded, his face still buried onto Severus’ chest.

           “There, there. I’m sorry for that.”

           Harry wrapped his arms around Severus, his sobbing subsided as he savoured the warmth and kindness of his beloved Master. How could he stay angry with him now that he had personally apologized to him?

           “I promise I will arrange you to meet him soon. So will you be a good boy till then?”

           Harry replied by smiling gratefully and kissed him out of impulse. Severus was taken aback at first but he didn’t pull back, nor did he let Harry pull back as he kissed him back hard. Harry eased into the kiss a little longer, doing French like it was nobody’s business. It was when his lungs were protesting for air that he soon realized what he just did and tore himself away from him, blushing apologetically. Severus just smiled at him.

           “Thank you, pet,” he said as he kissed his forehead. “Pet, do you…like me like that?”

           Harry blushed as red as the ripest tomato, looking at him bashfully. That was answering enough.

           “Would you like me to touch you?” Severus asked. Unlike last time, he didn’t want to do anything his pet didn’t want. Tonight he was going to let the boy make the decision to want him.

           Harry considered for a while, weighing out the options. After a while he nodded shyly.

           “Come to our room. I want to do something with you.”

           Harry followed behind timidly. Neville and Colin, who were worried about their little quiet friend and hiding behind the other side of the door eavesdropping them to see what was going on, quickly moved out of the way and out of sight as Severus opened the door to lead his little pet to their private quarters. They gave each other a thumbs-up signaling that everything was OK and gave Harry a naughty knowing wink (making Harry blush even harder) before Severus realized they were being watched and gave them the famous cold look, telling them to mind their own business. Giving a victory sign as a good luck wish to Harry, Neville and Colin quickly went back to their jobs, leaving Harry feeling rather awkward and embarrassed as he finally went into the room and Severus closing and locking the door with a spell before patting the bed, gesturing him to get up.

           “I won’t hurt you. Let me make up for what I did at the party just now.”

           Smiling, Harry crawled up onto the bed, ready for anything his Master had in for him. Severus got on, kneeling down between Harry’s legs and removing his jeans off.

           “Lift your shirt up for me, pet.”

           Harry did so, a tint of healthy pink running across his face.

           “You are so beautiful, Harry,” Severus said as he ran his hands up Harry’s thighs, making the boy shiver with delight. He soon took Harry’s cock in his hand and started stroking it lightly.

           Harry twitched at the touch, biting back a moan, couldn’t help feeling rather good about this.

           “No, let me know if you like it,” the older man smiled, teasing the tip.

           Harry slowly loosened himself, his breath quickening a little as he whimpered in pleasure at the stroking movements of his Master’s hand on his cock. Severus leaned down to taste him, running his tongue over the head. Oh, how he had longed to have this piece of lovely soft meat in his mouth, and it tasted heavenly.

           “Aah…!” Harry shivered at the contact of Severus’ wet tongue on his sensitive tip. “F…F…Fuck…!!”

           “Kinda,” Severus grinned as he took him fully into his mouth. Harry’s length wasn’t so big that he couldn’t take it all the way to the hilt, even though it was already beyond erected, but he loved every inch of it. He bobbed up and down, licking and sucking like it was the sweetest thing he had ever tasted, making the boy cry out in ecstasy. Harry gripped Severus’ hair, his body shivering with delight as the older man sucked harder. He could feel himself getting closer as Severus worked his talented tongue along the veins of his boyhood and tracing circles around his balls, while Severus’ own erection was pressing really hard against the tight fabric of his trousers, begging for release. Finally, the boy couldn’t hold back any longer. He threw his head back as he came long and hard into Severus’ mouth, a mix of a whimper and a scream escaping his tiny lips. Severus swallowed it down, not coming off until every drop was gone. There was no way he was going to let the love juice of his pet go to waste just like that. After making sure that he had totally milked Harry off, he leaned up over him.

           “Am I forgiven?”

           Harry panted heavily as he rode out the tremors before smiling and holding out his arms, wanting a hug from him. It was forgiveness enough from him.

           “Pet, I…I can't. I need to go to the bathroom. I am very aroused by your moans, dear one, but I don’t want to take you if you don’t want to.”

           Harry looked at the tight bulge for a moment, smiling affectionately as he knew what was going on inside there and understood what had caused it.

           “Although,” Severus continued as he caressed Harry’s face, “if you truly want, I would love to make love to you.”

           He didn’t have to ask twice. Harry would do anything for his lovely Master. He lowered his head timidly and nodded, his hand reaching over to the bulge and started teasing it. Severus’ breath hitched a little before he smiled back at the boy and kissed him, taking his own clothes off. Throwing it in a careless heap on the ground, he got the lube out of the side table drawer and handed it to Harry.

           “Here, take some and rub it on me.”

           Harry took the lube, his eyes unable to tear away from the sight of Severus’ manhood as he looked at it for the first time in a sober manner and not under the influence of alcohol. He blushed when suddenly an idea came to him. He uncapped the tube of lube and decided to use it on himself. Coating his fingers elaborately with the lube, he kneeled on all fours on the bed to take Severus’ length into his mouth. As he sucked the man meat hungrily, he entered himself with his lube-covered fingers one at a time, stretching himself so that he could be ready for his Master’s grand entrance.

           “Oh, fucking god…” Severus breathed as the surprisingly powerful suction Harry made took hold of his cock. It had been years since he had a decent blowjob. “Take it easy or I will come too soon. Just lick it.”

           Harry did so, licking all the way from the tip of the shaft to the end of the balls, humming as he savoured the taste, moaning once in a while as he finger-fucks himself, careful not to hit the sweet spot too soon.

           “Enough, pet. I need you,” Severus growled impatiently as he pushed him lightly down onto the bed.

           Harry giggled and squealed in delight as he fell back onto the bed, knowing that he had almost driven his Master crazy with his teasing.

           “Fucking god…so good…!” Severus moaned before biting his lip against the tight heat as he slowly entered Harry.

           “F…F…Fuck…!!” Harry’s scream echoed in the room, his eyes wide in shock as he felt himself being filled, his breath becoming erratic.

           “Shh, shh…Am I hurting you?” Severus asked worriedly, stilling himself and hoping he could adjust to his size now that he was receiving him with a sober mind.

           Harry shook his head and pushed himself deeper onto Severus’ cock with an upward thrust of his hips, looking at him with begging eyes.

           “Fuck…”

           “Very well,” Severus smiled and seated himself inside, beginning to move, making Harry moan and whine ecstatically. A wave of relief rushed through his heart to see the pure bliss in Harry’s eyes as he carried on at a slow and steady pace. “Such a good boy,” he whispered as he leaned down to kiss him.

           Harry kissed him back hungrily, lacing the older man’s black locks around his fingers, loving the feel of it as his legs automatically wrapped around Severus’ waist, wanting him to go deeper. Severus took that as a positive cue and started pounding into Harry.

           “You’re such a little slut, aren’t you, pet?”

           Harry widen his eyes for a moment at that word, tears involuntarily pour out of his eyes for that split second as his subconscious mind began to surface a memory he had kept locked away for a long time since he was sold into the business. But soon, Severus’ pounding over his sweet spot took over his state of mind, making his eyes see stars, his tears and memory ignored for the time being. Severus didn’t seem to notice though, due to the fact that he had his head thrown back in pleasure, going faster and faster. He did, however, manage to stroke Harry as he felt himself getting close. Harry’s breath hitched as soon as Severus took his cock to stroke. His pit of stomach began to tighten as the double assault on his cock and sweet spot by the older man hit him like a bullet train.

           “Vocalize your pleasure, Harry, I want to hear you.”

           “Mah…Mah… F...Fuck!!! Mah~!!!” Harry called his Master in his lack of articulation way, feeling himself getting closer. Finally, after his sweet spot was being assaulted and his cock pumped enough, he couldn’t hold back anymore. He screamed out loud as he came all over his stomach and Severus’ hand that stroke it.

           Severus felt Harry’s muscles tightened around him and soon lost control. One more thrust was all it took as he came inside the boy, letting out a satisfied groan he thought he never could make in a long time. He laid over him soon after, his body still shaking from the tremors of the afterglow. Finally he and his pet were one. He no longer felt the guilt of taking his little lover against his will or taking advantage of him while he was unconscious of his actions. But his feeling of relief was soon short-lived as he heard a choked voice whimpered under him.

           “S…Sl…ut…”

           He raised his head and saw that Harry’s tears poured out like rain as he rode out his tremors. There was something in his expression as he muttered the word that made his whole body felt like it was cut by a huge hunting knife and his heart like a lead balloon in his stomach. Whatever it was that was going through Harry’s mind, he knew that it was triggered by the careless word he had just called him.

           “Dear Go—No, no, no, I’m sorry,” Severus kissed the boy’s forehead hurriedly and pulled out before pulling Harry close to his chest. “You are not a slut. It just came out. You are not a slut. I never meant…”

           “S…Sl…ut…?” Harry repeated again, his whole body trembling like a leaf in the wind in Severus’ arms. Severus felt as if he had just been shot by the Cruciatus curse.

           “You are not a slut,” he assured him, kissing his forehead again. “You are my little one, my pet. I love you. I would never think of you any less.”

           Harry responded by breathing heavily, his hands on his head and his eyes shut tight, seemingly trying to block out the horrifying memory that was triggered from that single word. Severus just rocked him to and fro, trying hard to calm him down. He wanted to slap himself for that word. He had not even realized he had said it until he saw the pained look on his little pet. What was it that caused him to react so violently to that word? Who was it that made him fear the word so much? A million questions passed through his mind as he hushed Harry’s crying. Harry soon cried himself to sleep, but Severus could not as he was replaced with another sense of guilt.

           “For the love of Merlin, what exactly did they do to you in the business, pet?” Severus whispered, wrapping his arms protectively around poor Harry.

           He knew only one person could tell him the answer besides Harry.

           And he had to arrange a meeting soon.


	9. Chapter 9

           A week has passed since that fateful incident, both to Draco and Remus and Severus and Harry. They had their ups and downs during that week, but nothing serious. Occasionally, Lucius would make use of his leftover ‘energy’ to go tease Remus and make advances towards him, but most of the time, Remus would steer clear from him and would follow around Draco diligently, stating profusely that he belonged to Young Master Malfoy now and wished to keep it that way. Lucius’ assumptions of Remus’ getting tired of Draco or wanting more than just a small boy’s touch was backfired as not once did his ex-slave come crawling back to him. He had to settle with playing and fooling around with other slaves that belonged to some of his acquaintances, and they were only too happy to oblige as long as they had Lucius Malfoy, voice of the Ministry, to their advantage. Other than that, Remus remained loyal to Draco and would meet his every whim and fancy, satisfying him both on and off the bed. Although Draco had not once asked for sex since their first time together during his birthday, he was content just to kiss and cuddle his Young Master and hug him to sleep. Truthfully, he needed a little break from the sex anyway, and that whole week was rather refreshing for him.

           Severus, on the other hand, was still plagued with guilt throughout the week. Ever since he uttered the word ‘Slut’ and ended the sex at a sour note, he couldn’t look at Harry the same way again. His vow of abstinence crept back into his system as he vowed to fully understand the child before getting any more ahead of himself. Although Harry seemed to behave as if it had never happened, he could tell from the tiny flinches and small winces whenever he patted him head or stroke his chin or kissed him that he was still a little apprehensive, and the occasional sad look in his beautiful jade-green eyes were tell-tale signs enough for Severus to know that Harry’s awakened memory from that word had not subsided.

           He had to meet Remus quick before they grow anymore distant as it was.

           On that Friday afternoon after Potions class, he dismissed everyone except Draco so that he could tell Draco that he would like Remus to come and visit Harry the next day. Draco, not really used to having Remus away from him, suggested that his godfather come over to the Malfoy manor to let Harry visit him instead. After reaching an agreement, Severus relayed the good news to Harry, in which the boy squealed and jumped with glee before hugging Severus affectionately, which of course was not helping either Severus’ vow of abstinence or his crotch. The next day, Severus woke up to find himself alone on bed. He almost went into a panic attack trying to look for his beloved pet, thinking that he had ran out on him or gotten kidnapped and would’ve woken up the whole household and brought the house down looking for Harry if it weren’t for Colin nonchalantly remarking that he saw Harry sitting on the high couch of the dressing room waiting for Severus, dangling his legs like it was nobody’s business. Needless to say, Harry almost got a scolding for making his Master worry his head off.

           “Don’t you ever do that again to me, understand, pet? I know you’re excited for today but this doesn’t give you the reason to give me a heart attack.”

           Harry stuck his tongue out apologetically, like a child would when he was caught taking an extra cookie from the cookie jar.

           “Honestly, Harry. Have I ever broken a promise to you before? It wouldn’t kill you to have a little patience, would it?” Severus grumbled and muttered under his breath as he looked through the clothes he wanted his pet to wear. Finally he found a pair of jeans shorts that ran only all the way down half of Harry’s thigh and a big adult-sized blue T-shirt that said ‘King for A Day’ for Harry to wear. Severus chuckled at the pun on the shirt. Today was Harry’s big day after all. It sort of suited him, although it was pointless to let him wear jeans underneath since the shirt was huge as usual and ran past the shorts towards the boy’s knees, but then again, it was better than having some lecherous random guy looking under Harry’s shirt to see nothing but underwear underneath. He was not taking any chances letting his guard down against any potential people that may have their grubby hands on his pet.

           Harry smiled as soon as he was done dressing. He didn’t seem to mind the irony of the outfit. Obviously he was very excited to go visit Remus that he didn’t care much how he looked. Severus smiled at the innocent look his little one had and held out his hand.

           “Come. We shan’t be late for your big meeting now, shall we?”

           The older man soon led him to the carriage and got in. Harry automatically followed after him and found his comfort zone on Severus’ lap. Severus stroke his hair, feeling relieved that at least Harry was not resisting sitting on his lap, though his guilt still lingered. Harry turned to look at Severus with a “Are you OK?” look but Severus shook his head, assuring him that everything was fine before lifting Harry’s chin and kissed him softly before looking out of the window. The couple rode in comfortable silence as the carriage drove them all the way to the Malfoy manor. At the front door, Severus could see from the carriage window that the slave Remus walking side by side with Draco around the front yard, chit-chatting to each other as they waited for Severus to greet him. The expression both Remus and Draco had when they spoke and teased each other was enough to tell Severus that they were more than just Young Master and slave. He wondered whether they had gone way back before Lucius decided to give Remus to his son as a present, but it wasn’t his business to pry. As long as his godson was happy, nothing else mattered.

           As soon as the carriage stopped, Harry jumped off Severus’ lap and made a mad dash to Remus, rushing over to hug him and letting out an excited squeal.

           “Hey, Harry,” Remus chuckled as he patted Harry’s head. “How’re you doing?”

           “Absolutely fabulous, since he almost gave his Master a heart attack by waking up hours before me and decided to play hide-and-seek on poor me,” Severus grinned as he got off and dismissed the carriage.

           “You’re that happy to see me, aye, Har?”

           Harry gave him a toothy grin as a reply.

           “I will let you guys be. I have riding lessons to go to,” Draco replied, yawning at the bored task he was about to undertake.

           “Just don’t be too hard on the horse, eh? We did give them a rather…vigorous time with our little ‘escapades’,” Remus grinned, flashing a wink at him.

           “Remus Lupin~!” Draco said warningly, his face blushing slightly.

           “Oh? What does he mean by that, Draco?” Severus rubbed his chin knowingly.

           “Nothing! I’m going!” Draco almost shouted as he left, leaving the chuckling Remus behind his wake. He ruffled the boy’s hair, in which Harry squealed in delight and giggled.

           “How is my little ol’ Har been doing? Have you been a good boy?”

           “Remus,” Severus said, feeling that it is best to bring it out front what the true purpose of their meeting was. “I must ask you something.”

           “Yes, Master Snape?” Remus replied as he led both Severus and Harry into the manor.

           “After the birthday party last week, Harry and I got a little…intimate. Unfortunately I got ahead of myself and called Harry something that…I feel bad about. He reacted rather adversely to it and well…I was wondering if you…”

           Severus couldn’t continue, his guilty conscience creeping back to him. Remus looked at Severus for a while, seemingly knowing what he was trying to say, then covered Harry’s ears before asking, “You called him…a slut, didn’t you, Master Snape?”

           “Yes,” Severus sighed.

           “I think it is best we discuss this somewhere private,” Remus said as he carried Harry in his arms as if he weighed nothing. Severus nodded and followed Remus. The younger man led the older one to a room upstairs where Draco’s old playthings used to be. The room was nice and clean, but the things that scattered around were clearly not in use anymore since Draco’s was at an age where he shouldn’t be playing toys anymore. He brought Harry into Draco's old playhouse which hadn't been used for a long time and let Harry down to play with the toys before sitting on the floor in front of Severus.

           “I’ve only known Harry when he came into the business, but what I learnt from him while he's under my training that this started way back. I gather you have heard that Harry’s foster family wasn’t exactly the type of a model family should be.”

           “Yes. I read about them.”

           “Well, apparently before Harry joined us, he had already been…‘broken into’. His cousin…took a sort of sexual liking to him, then cornered him with his friends and…gang-raped him. They called him…” Remus looked at Harry cautiously before continuing, “that word over and over again while they force-fed him with a Muggle drug and raped him for almost a week. I think that drug was some sort of what Muggles call the ‘date-rape’ drug or drugs that would increase libido and bring out your inner lust or something.

           “The first time we knew that Harry was very sensitive to that word was when the head of the slave trader passed Harry to me to be trained. As expected, young Harry at that time put up with a lot of fight, and I tried my best to make the training as easy for him as possible. When he refused to be toy-trained—it’s a code-name for us to be trained with Muggle sex toys and dildos—my co-trainer said these exact words: _You are a slut and you know it, so take the fucking toy and start acting like one._ I swear I have never seen such traumatized eyes from that boy as he shrank into that fetal position with his hands on his head and his mouth screaming and crying like hell descended on earth. We had to sedate him and extract that memory of his cousin and his friends raping him to put it in the Pensieve so he would not have to remember it again.”

           Severus was speechless as he heard this story coming out of Draco’s slave’s mouth. How could his own cousin do this to him? And allowing his friends to gang-rape him no doubt! Severus suddenly felt the urge to castrate the culprits that cause his little pet so much pain.

           “I have been in the business ever since my parents died when I was 9 and left me for naught, and I am considered one of the veteran slaves and I rely on my years of experience to know and learn what goes about in the sex slave business. For us sex slaves, we were always given a background check of where we come from, who we are, what are our origins, etc. by using the Pensieve method of viewing our history and keep a record, thus the stuff you read about Harry. Sometimes they omit out certain things in the records so that they would not leave a bad impression the customers who bought them, like Harry’s sensitivity to that word. I guess they failed to realize that they may be able to take away the memories, but they could never take away the emotional scars that are left behind to decay in such a fragile thing called the heart. It is often these emotional scars that force the bad memories to resurface, no matter how many times you eliminate them.”

           “Dear God…” Severus felt his heart clench. “Now I know why. I still can’t believe I said it. It just slipped out.”

           “I know you never meant any harm, Master Snape,” Remus said. “I know it was just the heat of the moment. His last client didn’t take it too well though. He used that word on him and he had to return him to us, demanding a refund, because Harry wouldn’t stop crying for 3 days straight. Again, we had to sedate him and extract the memory out of his head. But still, I believe one day he will understand that anything you say to him will not mean any harm, even that word. He just needs time.”

           “I know. But I think I better steer clear from uttering it for now.”

           “True. Better safe than sorry,” Remus smiled as Harry, who was done playing in the playhouse, came over to him carrying a big lion plushie doll. “I see you have taken care of Harry really well. It’s been so long since I seen him smile like that.”

           Harry giggled as Remus patted him on the head, leaning against him affectionately like a child would to a father. Severus smiled seeing that sight.

           “I think he needs a father more than a lover.”

           Remus shook his head, “He may appear childish and behave so, but ever since his incident and his days in the business, he has matured emotionally. I think he understands that he deserves a lover more than anything else. His behaviour now is his own way to cope with his scars.”

           “He is a brave little one,” Severus said, ruffling Harry’s hair. Harry, in turn, smiled and grinned at Severus.

           “Mah!”

           “He still hasn’t learnt to talk yet, I see,” Remus said it as a matter of fact.

           “No,” Severus confirmed it. “I have a speech teacher coming in next month. He should start to learn to talk in no time.”

           “I find it hard to imagine him talking,” Remus chuckled. “His action alone speaks louder than words. He has touched many of our hearts in the business, and it’s his silent yet cheerful nature that keeps us going at times.”

           “Well, I want him to know more words than just ‘Mah’ for Master, ‘Nummy’ for ‘Yummy’, sl…well, you-know-what and ‘Fuck’.”

           Remus laughed at the last word Severus uttered, “Did you really say that, Har?”

           Harry gave him a toothy grin.

           “Not that I don’t like it,” Severus chuckled as well. “I just really want him to know more words.”

           “True. Even those homeless Muggles among us in the business are far more articulate than Harry.”

           “Would you like to sit on my lap, Harry?” Severus asked.

           Harry looked at Remus, then looked at Severus, then back again, not sure what to decide.

           “It’s your choice, Har. We won’t force you,” Remus said.

           Harry looked at either two long and hard for a while, then finally smiled and decided to sit on Severus’ lap.

           “Looks like he still likes you better, Master Snape. I feel grateful and happy that he had found someone like you to take care of him.”

           “I just don’t understand why anyone would want to harm such a sweet, innocent child like him.”

           “The world is a cruel, unfair place sometimes. We learn to cope somehow. I do pity people like Harry though. They should have a normal life, not like this.”

           “Yes. I am trying to give a normal life to Harry as best I can,” Severus agreed, then turned to Harry and asked, “Do you like living with me, Harry?”

           Harry nodded hard, cuddling the lion plushie doll close to his chest.

           “You seem to like the doll, I see,” Remus said, pointing at the doll, in which Harry nodded gleefully in reply.

           “Looks like I know what to get you now for your birthday,” Severus grinned.

           Harry shook his head and held onto the doll tighter.

           “I think he wants that only and he wants it right now,” Remus chuckled. Harry looked at Severus pleadingly, holding the doll impossibly tight that the head seemed to threaten to come off its neck.

           “We have to ask Draco first, Harry,” Severus said and smiled when Harry pouted in response, not wanting to let go of the doll. “But you can hold onto it right now.”

           Suddenly, without warning, Remus perked up as if hearing something, “Looks like Young Master Malfoy is throwing his usual tantrum on the horse again.”

           “Eh? Where?” Severus asked, looking around to see where Draco was.

           “Oh, sorry, I forgot that you don’t know me much yet,” Remus scratched his chin awkwardly. “I’m a bit of a werewolf, you see. When I was 12, I couldn’t stand the way my previous Master was treating me in his sex games and tried to run away. I soon got lost in the woods behind his home and got attacked by a werewolf. Luckily I wasn’t bitten. I survived with only a few scratches by the werewolf’s claws, but that was enough to turn me into half a werewolf. The werewolf who had attacked me was probably experiencing some sort of post-natal disorder or something because she thought I was her cub, which was probably the reason why she didn’t kill me. She took me away deeper into the woods and nursed me back to health, and treated me like I was her real son.

           “I learnt through certain pictures hidden under the cellar of her old cottage that she used to have a husband and a baby, but apparently she was also a victim of another werewolf attack herself as she was turned and somehow killed her husband and baby on a full moon’s night. Since then, she went a little ka-ka in the head and roamed around the woods looking for her so-called missing husband and baby and was overjoyed when she finally ‘found’ me. She was in her own little world and would talk many nice things about ‘my father’ and that I would be so thrilled to see him if she ever ‘found’ him. Aside from the transformation every night when she would go savagely wild and I had to lock her out of the house until she reverted back, she was a very nice woman. In fact, during my half a year stay with her, I almost believed she really was my mother. No one treated me so nicely like she did.”

           “I see,” Severus replied sympathetically. “You seem to refer to her as a past tense. Did she…?”

           Remus nodded. “My Master contacted the business about my disappearance, and the business, being that they didn’t want to lose one of their best money-makers, quickly sent out a search party. She never saw it coming. They ambushed the cottage unannounced and she was getting ready to change at that time. I was so engrossed in preparing the necessary tools to keep her out of the house that I didn’t know their presence until they came in with their wands and chains and leashes. They quickly grabbed me and tied me up in their chains, thinking that she was going to attack me or something. She, being the protective ‘mother’, lunged at them despite her half-transformation and they gave her the Cruciatus curse. I wanted to go to her and make them stop torturing her but they held me back. At her last attempt to save me, the head of the slave trader stepped in and stabbed her with a silver knife right through the heart. I was taken away, kicking and screaming back to the business—my Master was reprimanded for not looking after their ‘merchandize’ well and confiscated me from him, terminating their sales agreement—and she was left there at the cottage to probably rot. I never saw her again since.”

           “I’m…I’m really sorry to hear that…I didn’t think that you slaves would come from such a…shockingly devastating childhood…”

           “It’s alright,” Remus smiled. “Our plight is more or less the same: sold to slave traders because we were driven by extreme poverty. Won’t do much to reminiscence too long on it.”

           “You say you are half a werewolf. What does that mean?”

           “Don't worry. I don’t change as often as someone who is bitten. Only once every 3 months. Like I said, I was only scratched, not bitten, and I don’t go around killing cattle or howl at the moon or whatnot. I still retain a little bit of my sanity when I change, but the beast in me usually conquers my mind. Aside from having super-human strength when I’m in human form, I got heightened senses as well, that’s why I can hear Young Master from this distance. Ah, there he goes again.”

           “Yes, Draco hates having to do things over and over again. He doesn’t do well with repetition. He has a restless soul, that I can say.”

           “I think he’s gonna need some help,” Remus said as he got up. “Excuse me for a moment.”

           Harry instinctively gripped Remus’ sleeve, giving him both a questioning and reluctant look.

           “Do you want to come along, Har?”

           Harry nodded excitedly.

           “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt having him here around for a while,” Severus said as he looked at the time. “I still have some work brought from my office to do at home. You can stay here for the moment, Harry. I will be back at dinner time. If anyone touches you like I do, I give you permission to bite them, OK?”

           Harry nodded again. At this point, in order to hang out with Remus, he’d agree to anything.

           “Be a good boy now,” Severus kissed him both on the head and on the lips before leaving for the front door. As Remus and Harry sent him off, Harry tried to remember the word to bid people farewell before trying to say it as he waved at his Master.

           “Bai-bai, Mah!”

           Severus felt that if this was his final moments, he’d die in content.


	10. Chapter 10

           “I don't want to do it again. I am tired and I want to take a break.”

           Draco whined for the umpteenth time at Tyler the horse-riding trainer who told him to practice his turn again. He wasn’t really keen on riding lessons today—he wanted to be by Remus’ side—but he could tell that his godfather needed a little privacy with Remus. Besides, there was no running away from Tyler once he’s caught onto him. Personally Draco didn’t like the horse riding lessons. He’d prefer that he rode and learn things at his own leisure, not by the tight regime of Tyler who seemed to take pride asking people to repeat things over and over again until he sees perfection in it. It almost seemed like it would kill him if he steered even a small inch away from the original move. If they were to describe the term ‘Obsessive Compulsive Disorder’ in the encyclopedia, his picture would probably be on it.

           “Practice makes perfect, Young Master,” Tyler shook his finger. “Now, from the top…”

           “Give him a break, Tyler.”

           Both turned to see Remus coming over with Harry grabbing onto Remus’ sleeve in one hand and holding the lion plushie doll in the other. For once, Remus was dressed a bit more decently than when he was under Lucius. No more one-piece T-shirt dress for him except during bedtimes, and nothing skimpy or out of the ordinary either. He was definitely a sight for sore eyes for Draco.

           “Remus,” Draco grinned.

           “None of your business, slave. I’m the trainer here. Get lost.”

           Remus went up to the slave, his eyes flashed golden as he let out a hypnotic effect—one of Remus’ many powers as a half werewolf—and said, “I think you need a rest too.”

           Tyler was soon caught in Remus’ gaze and fell into Remus’ hypnotic trance. Moments later, he walked away back into the manor in a daze. As soon as Tyler went into the mansion, Draco jumped down the horse and hugged him. Remus hugged him back just as much. Harry giggled at the sight, doll still in his arms.

           “Oh, hello, Harry,” Draco smiled. “You like Leo?”

           Harry nodded hard.

           “Will you take good care of him?”

           Harry nodded hard.

           “Then you can have him.”

           Harry jumped up and down with glee as he hugged the doll with joy. Remus chuckled at the sight.

           “Where’s Uncle Sev?” Draco asked, looking around.

           “Oh, Master Snape had to go for a while. He’ll be back later at dinnertime,” Remus replied as he stole a look at Salazar the horse. “I gather it was a crappy lesson as usual?”

           “Yes. I hate riding the same routine over and over again but the stupid trainer kept pushing me and Salazar is tired too.”

           “Yeah, I know. Poor horse. Guess it’s time to put him in the stable.”

           “Yeah. Allow me,” Draco said as he blushed again. Ever since their relationship started, the stable had always been their special place. He couldn’t help thinking about the first time they got together. He took the horse inside and put him away in its station.

           Harry, who had never seen a horse before up close, went up behind Salazar and pulled at its tail out of curiosity. The horse got offended by his meddling and automatically kick Harry hard at the thighs, making him hit against the wall with a loud thud. The pain immediately sent Harry into a pool of tears as he cried out loud, making Remus panic.

           “Harry!” Remus cried as he ran to him.

           “Salazar!” Draco scolded the horse. He quickly closed the horse up in its station and went to Remus. “Is he OK, Remy? I remember doing the same thing when I was his age. Almost broke my arm because of that.”

           “Well, at least he’s crying and not unconscious, or we’d definitely have a mess in our hands,” Remus said as he looked Harry’s leg. “Man, that is definitely going to bruise.”

           “Shh, Harry. It’s OK. Salazar is being a mean horse, don’t mind him,” Draco comforted the bawling Harry into a whimper. “Is anything broken, Remy?”

           Remus sniffed around with his sensitive nose, “No, just a few scratches here and there, but his left thigh took most of the impact. It would definitely leave a big, _big_ bruise.”

           “Let’s take him to my room and have some snacks. That’ll calm him down,” Draco said. “Want that, Harry? Want snacks.”

           Harry sniffled a little, but nodded. Draco smiled and led the way to the room while Remus went off to the kitchen to get the snacks and the tea. Soon, Remus came into Draco’s room carrying the tray of goodies with him. Harry was still sniffling as he sat on Draco’s bed, looking at his throbbing thigh.

           “It’s gonna be OK soon. Here’s Remus with the snacks. That’ll cheer you up.”

           Indeed, at the sight of the beautiful pastries and cookies about, Harry soon had a smile on his face.

           “Take you pick, boys,” Remus said as he settled the tray onto the center table. Harry quickly stuffed himself with cream crackers and crumpets, making a mess of himself. Draco took an individual cake and bit into it.

           “Mmm…Cream-filled,” Draco commented, then the hidden meaning behind that statement sunk in and Draco went bright red.

           Remus noticed the pun and chuckled, receiving a mock death glare from Draco and Harry looking at the both of them curiously.

           “Not funny, Remy. You’re not supposed to laugh at your Master,” Draco scolded but with a grin on his red face.

           “Sorry, Young Master. Here, let me clean the excess off,” Remus grinned as he leaned over to lick the cream at the side of his mouth. Harry watched with sparkling eyes in interest as Draco turned to catch Remus’ lips, kissing him. Remus reciprocated, kissing him back tenderly. After moments of sweet bliss, Draco pulled back, blushing like a rose in bloom. Harry giggled and clapped his hands at the wonderful sight.

           “Uh…” Draco blushed deeper, totally forgetting that there was a third party there.

           “Har, why don’t you go to the backyard and play? There’s a swing out back you can sit on.”

           Harry, seeing the bashful Draco pretending to be very interested in his tea, got the idea and tottered out of the room, carrying Leo the doll with him, but not before flashing a naughty knowing look at them.

           “Har, go away,” Remus gave him a mock warning look, sending Harry running out of the room with a mischievous giggle.

           Draco ate the rest of his food, pretending that just now didn’t happen. Well, Remus was definitely not going to let it hang just like that. He sat beside him to drink his tea, then took a mouthful and fed it to Draco through a kiss. Draco moaned in the kiss, drinking in the tea at the same time. Slowly, Remus starting kissing him deeper, savouring the taste of his lover’s mouth. Draco let him kiss a bit longer before pushing him back.

           “Remy, I can’t.”

           “Why not?” Remus asked, a little worried. “Have I done something wrong?”

           “It’s not you. It’s just that…the other night…with Father and Mother watching…I can’t…I don’t think I can do it again.”

           Remus sighed. He knew it was a traumatic thing to happen, having your own parents watching you being taken of your virginity when it was supposed to be a private occasion between you and your lover. It wasn’t something to overcome that easily. He wrapped his arms around the boy and held him close.

           “I understand. I’ll be here with you whenever you’re ready.”

           “I want to,” Draco said, hugging him back. “I want to be with you again. It’s just that…”

           “It’s alright. I won’t rush you. You just tell me when you’re really ready. For now, I won’t go any further.”

           “I could…suck you. I think I can do that.”

           “Alright,” Remus said as he removed his pants to reveal his manhood. “If you insist. Just stop whenever you don’t feel like it.”

           Draco knelt between his knees and took his length in his hand. “Tell me what you want me to do.”

        “Do it to me like you did the first time. Kiss the head and start licking. It’ll come back to you soon enough.”

        Draco nodded, leaning down to kiss the head before his tongue darted out to taste Remus.

            “Ooh, yes, like that. Very good,” Remus moaned as he leaned against the bed post to let Draco do his thing. Draco took him in his mouth, bobbing up and down while licking all the way. He ran his hand under Remus’ shirt, feeling his stomach through his tender fingers. Remus moaned at the feeling of Draco's mouth moving on his cock. Oh, how he missed his Young Master’s mouth on him. One week felt so long ago now that he had finally had Draco’s wet heat around him.

            “Mmh, yes, suck it. Take in as much as you can.”

            Draco did that, stopping before he gagged. He kept bobbing up and down, in and out while using his other hand to stroke what length he could not. Remus shivered as he felt Draco stroking and sucking him, his hands gripping the bed sheets tightly and his breath getting quicker and quicker. He was so close. So close. Draco could tell from his breathing that he was going to explode. He pulled out, earning a moan of soft protest from his lover, and licked his lips while still stroking him.

            “Kiss me, Remy…”

            Remus leaned down to kiss him, tasting a little bit of himself in his mouth, making him feel even more aroused and closer to the brink.

            “I’m close, Drake…” Remus panted between kisses.

            “Where do you want to come?”

            “Anywhere you want me to, Drake…Please, I'm going to explode…”

            Draco hurriedly pulled off his shirt and laid down on the bed, grinning seductively as he said, “Then come on me, my wolf.”

            Remus quickly leaned forward, pumping himself until every fiber of his being shook violently as he released his load all over Draco’s naked top. Draco kept his mouth open and tasted some of the cum that got onto his face. He ran a finger through it and licked his finger clean, savouring the taste of his slave’s love juice like it was caviar in his lips.

            “I swear, Drake,” Remus chuckled a little as he panted and shivered through his tremors, “you are getting more and more bold everyday, and sexier too.”

            “I had to make up for no sex,” Draco grinned.

            “I’m sure that one day, when you’re ready, you will be the sexiest and most charming man in the world,” Remus said as he leaned his forehead against Draco’s.

            “And one day we will have our own place and you will be free.”

            “I look forward to it, my Young Master,” Remus said as he kissed him.

            Draco kissed him back, his own erection tenting his trousers. Remus felt the bulge pressing against his stomach when he leaned forward to kiss him and chuckled.

            “Looks like someone’s excited.”

            “Well…kinda. Your cock did that to me.”

            “Then let me do the honours of relieving it,” Remus said as he reached his hands to undo the pants to release the bulge, “Impressive as always.”

            “Remus,” Draco whispered, leaning up to kiss him again.

            Remus kissed back while his hand started to tease the tip of Draco’s leaking shaft. Draco shuddered under him, moaning into the kiss and thrusting his hips to meet with Remus’ strokes. Remus does a tongue dance with him as he continued to stroke Draco, licking every crevice within his mouth. It had been so long since he had been touched that way, and frankly for a young sensitive boy like Draco, the sensation was too much. He couldn’t hold out much longer. Everything just went into a blur in a second and once everything was cleared, he didn’t realize it until he opened his eyes to see that he had come all over Remus’ hand and on Remus’ shirt.

            “Mmm, you taste pretty good as well,” Remus smiled and licked the cum off his hand.

            “Stop saying things like that,” Draco blushed.

            “But it’s true,” Remus grinned, making a show as he licked off the last drops clinging between his fingers. “You taste heavenly.”

            “Remus Lupin~!” Draco warned as he looked away in embarrassment. Remus chuckled and kissed Draco’s forehead. He knew better than to tease his Young Master any further once he started calling him by his full name.

            “Alright, alright. I won’t tease you anymore, Drake. We better go check on Harry. We’ve left him alone for too long.”

            “Yes, we’d better. I hope Father…”

            The second it was out of his mouth, he jumped off the bed and quickly got dressed. Remus followed suite, knowing exactly what his Young Master was trying to do.

            No one is safe around Lucius Malfoy.


	11. Chapter 11

            Harry is still outside playing the swing, looking up to the sky once in a while, while everything was going on inside the manor. He had enjoyed his time hanging out with Remus and got to rekindle the friendship a little, but somehow he began to miss his Master. Somehow, deep inside him, he wished he would hurry and take him home. Finally being able to meet his long lost friend was fun and all, but oddly enough, he knew he belonged to his Master Severus Snape.

            If only he knew what word to describe this sort of feeling.

            As he was contemplating about it, Lucius had just come back from drinking with Crabbe and Goyle at Hog’s Head and was walking outside when he saw Harry sitting on his son’s swing, playing away like it was nobody’s business. He even recognized the lion plushie doll his son named Leo that he gave him for his 5th birthday seated comfortably and securely on the boy’s lap. Draco must’ve been in one of his charitable moods to be allowing a slave to have his toy, but no matter. What mattered most that his dear god-brother’s sex slave was there, free and for the taking. He smirked to himself and went over to him.

            “Hello there, boy.”

            Harry turned towards the voice and recognized him as Draco’s father from the birthday party last week. He smiled at him good-naturedly.

            “Where is your Master?”

            Harry tried to say he went off and will be back later, but didn’t know how to say it, so he just shrugged.

            “Did you like playing in Draco’s old playhouse?”

            Harry nodded with a cute grin.

            “Would you like me to show you the toys inside?” Lucius asked, touching his head.

            Harry was surprised as he gave him a ‘There’s more toys?’ look.

            “Well, inside the playhouse, there is a special spot that has more toys in it, and I know exactly where it is.”

            Harry thought for a while. More toys, huh? He then grinned widely and nodded, allowing Lucius to escort him back to the room where the playhouse was. Lucius smirked to himself as he led him in. It has been a while since he toyed with a young kid. The last time he did it was 3 months ago with Bellatrix Lestrange’s slave, and that felt almost like forever to him.

            “Go in first,” Lucius said as he gestured him to the playhouse. “I’m right behind you.”

            Harry nodded and did so, crawling into the playhouse excitedly as he looked forward to more toys. Lucius followed after him behind, looking at his ass covered by those short jeans under the shirt. He had hoped that the boy wore nothing else underneath, but he knew Severus was too overprotective to allow his pet to go all skimpy like that. _Oh well, it’s just one extra clothing._ Lucius thought nonchalantly. _Nothing wrong about that._

Harry, on the other hand, was still oblivious with what was going on and was still searching for the toys Lucius mentioned. Lucius sat beside the front door of the playhouse and leaned against the door.

            “Come here, Harry. I found them. They are right here.”

            Harry turned and followed the direction where Lucius was pointing. Without warning, Lucius pulled Harry onto his lap with his back against Lucius’ chest.

            “Right here.”

            Harry was shocked. He could feel the offending bulge right under his ass where he was seated and could tell that it was his crotch. He didn’t like where this was going and started to struggle.

            “Hush, Harry. I won’t hurt you, that is if you’re a good boy.”

            Harry shook his head and tried to get out of Lucius’ grasp, trying to push him away. Lucius grabbed both Harry’s wrists together with one hand and held it behind his back, restraining him.

            “Now, now, boy. There’s no use struggling from me. Besides, your Master likes to share with me. We are family. We always share,” Lucius whispered near his ear, licking his earlobe. “You don’t want to disappoint your Master, do you?”

            Harry widened his eyes in shock. He could not believe that Severus would do that to him. But then he remembered how close the way his Master and Lucius were talking during the party. It seemed true enough that they were family. Would it be true that they shared? After all, this wasn’t the first time he was shared among other people. His first two Masters made him several all-nighters with their friends often, especially when there was a huge drinking party going on. Was his Master that kind of person as well? He knew he would do anything for his Master, but this was a little bit out of the question.

            “Are you going to be a good boy?” Lucius chuckled darkly, his other hand slowly snaked under the shirt to undo the clasp of his jeans.

            Harry trembled as his body slowly but reluctantly submitted. If he was his Master’s family, then it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary to assume that Severus had a thing for sharing. He said his Master liked to share, so he would definitely not want to disappoint him. He’d go to the ends of the earth for him anyway…

            “Master Snape! Good evening!”

            “Hey, Uncle Sev!”

            Harry snapped out of his reverie at upon hearing Draco and Remus greeting Severus downstairs. Memories of the party where Severus gripped Sirius’ hand and warning him not to touch his pet began to surface in his mind. If Severus liked to share, he wouldn’t have done that to Sirius. In fact, he had not allowed anyone in the party to touch him even once, not even Lucius. Besides, he remembered saying that if anyone touched him the way he touched him, he was allowed to bite that person. If it was anyone he meant…

            Without warning, Harry quickly turned around and sank his teeth onto Lucius’ shoulder, biting down hard and drawing blood. The pain forced Lucius to let go of him and push him away.

            “Ahh!!! Fuck!! You little bitch!!!” Lucius shouted in pain as he nursed his shoulder. In anger, he reached out and slapped Harry hard on the face, sending him flying across the playhouse and banging it soundly. Draco and Remus who greeted the returning Severus heard the commotion.

            “Harry?!” Draco came running towards the room where Lucius and Harry was, Remus following behind him quickly. They both gasped to see Lucius crawling out of the playhouse with his bleeding shoulder and Harry still inside, sobbing as he held his throbbing face. Severus came in soon after.

            “What is going on here? Where is Harry?”

            Harry heard Severus and quickly ran out of the playhouse and towards him, crying, “Mah~!”

            “Harry,” Severus smiled and knelt down, his arms wide open to hold him. The mansion felt so lonely without his little pet and he could hardly concentrate with his work without having Harry right by his side waiting hand and foot for him. He would’ve gotten here sooner if he hadn’t thought that he was doing a favour for his pet to get reacquainted with his best friend, so all he could do was mope about and scan through the homework he had to mark, not exactly reading them. Come dinnertime, his work was not even 10 percent done and he was already rushing out of the mansion and ordering the carriage to hurry up and take him to the Malfoy manor, only to find Harry wrapping his arms around his neck, clinging onto him for dear life, wailing and crying like a baby.

            “Harry, shh, shh, shh. What’s wrong, little one?” Severus asked, rubbing his back.

            “You should discipline your slave better, Severus. You’re spoiling him,” Lucius said grudgingly as he threw Leo at his feet before holding onto his slightly bleeding shoulder.

            “Spoil? I doubt that,” Severus looked knowingly at the blood while picking both Leo and Harry up. “You touch my slave again and you will be holding a bloody groin.”

            “You cannot have the slave all to yourself, Severus. Slaves, especially sexual ones, are public property and should be shared and used as we please. There’s nothing you’ll gain from keeping and being so overprotective to a piece of filth like him!”

            “He is not a sex slave anymore! He is my personal slave! Not that you should know but sometimes I do feel like having sex with him but he is mine. Mine and mine alone! I bought him, remember?! He’s my pet, not yours!”

            “Then at least teach him some manners and behave appropriately in front of other masters above him. He should understand that no matter who buys him, others have the right to do him as they see fit! He's an animal, Severus, and you’re not training him right! Look what he done to me!”

            “I know, Lucius, I can see that. I gave him permission to bite anyone that touches him in a sexual way. I am training him how _I_ want to.”

            Lucius stomped towards Severus and came face to face with him, making Harry whimper as he clung onto Severus and shrinking away from him, “He will be the death of you if you carry on like this. Mark my words, Severus; he will bring nothing but misery to you and those around you. You _will_ regret it.”

            With that, he stormed off, leaving an awkward master and slave couple and a smug Severus holding a terrified Harry behind. Lucius did not scare him. He never scared him. He had been apprehensive, happy, sad or angry around Lucius throughout their years of growing up, but never scared. That was the last thing he’d feel from him.

            “It seems he brought it only to you,” Severus smiled in a sneering way before patting Harry’s back. “There, there, Harry. The big bad Lucius is gone. You ready to go home?”

            Harry nodded, his face still buried on Severus’ shoulder.

            “F-Forgive me, Master Snape,” Remus bowed apologetically. “I should’ve been watching him instead of…”

            “Indeed you should’ve,” Severus said, landing an accusing eye on the half-werewolf. “Although I suppose Lucius had been the one mostly at fault.”

            “Still…” Remus said as he bowed again. “Forgive me, Master Snape.”

            “It is not my decision to forgive. You can punish him if you want, Draco, but my main concern right now is that I need to get Harry home. Good evening.”

            Remus looked at Draco warily. Draco just sighed in response. Severus may say that it was his freedom of choice whether to punish Remus or not, but he knew from his godfather’s tone that he wanted to at least be taught a lesson about negligence. As he watched his godfather and his pet leave, he couldn’t help feeling that he, too, was also the cause of all this mess. Harry continued to cling onto Severus but waved goodbye at Remus without looking up or tearing his face away from Severus’ shoulder. It was only once they got into the carriage that Harry finally dared to tear his face away from that broad, strong shoulder.

            “Mah…” Harry muttered, his tone indicating that he wanted to say something.

            “Yes, pet?” Severus asked as he rubbed his head.

            Harry looked up with a pair of lost eyes, seemingly to say “You won’t ever abandon me, will you…?”

            “I love you, pet,” Severus replied, smiling wryly. “I will never let anyone else touch you in that way.”

            “L…o…ve…Lo…ve…” Harry tried to speak that word.

            “Yes. Love. Unconditional affection toward someone. In this case toward you.”

            Harry blushed a little. Is that what it meant? Is that what described that mysterious feeling he had for his Master? Love? It sounded right; it should be what it meant. Harry finally smiled and leaned his head on Severus’ shoulder.

            “Lo…ve.”

            “Yes, little one.”

            Harry made a gesture with his hands, first pointing to himself then to Severus before uttering, “Lo…ve.”

            “I love you too, pet.”

            Harry smiled and gave a peck on Severus’ lips, glad that he understood what he meant. Severus let it end there. He didn’t want to remind Harry of what Lucius did to him…Lucius.

            “Harry, did…did Draco’s father do anything to you? Anything that we do at home?”

            Harry thought for a moment. He did hold his hands in a death grip, licked his earlobe and tried to undo his jeans, but he did not do anything further than that. He shook his head, stating that he did nothing. It was best that his Master didn’t worry about these things. He was there to rescue him and that’s all he could ever hoped for.

            “Good,” Severus said, rubbing his back. In truth, Severus could tell that Lucius did do something to him, but since Harry denied it, then it shouldn’t be something serious that he did. He left it at that.

            Once they got home, Severus took Harry outside in the garden and asked Neville who just so happened to be there tending the roses to fetch him some ice. Neville nodded and left to the kitchen. He didn’t need to ask who was it for, but he did wonder what happened that made him need it.

            “Your cheek is going to bruise for sure,” Severus said with a slight pained look in his eyes. He had known Lucius to be rather violent with his slaves. He could tell enough from the bruises and the occasional tourniquets around his previous slaves’ body parts to know that they had suffered the wrath of Lucius Malfoy. Even back then during their school years, Lucius had been well-known around Hogwarts to pack a mean punch, especially when Severus was being bullied by the Marauder’s group and Lucius had to come and rescue him with his trusty right hook that left them incapacitated for days at a time and earned him in detention.

            Harry whimpered and pointed at his thigh as well, which was already beginning to bruise as he remembered that he had suffered the wrath of Salazar the horse as well.

            “Now what happened here? Did Draco’s father do that too?”

            Harry shook his head and tried to say the word ‘Horse’, but it came out as “Ho…Ho…”

            “Ho, ho, what? What sound does it make?”

            Harry tried to imitate a horse’s neigh, but came out sounding like a dying one.

            “Oh, a horse, you say,” Severus’ lips twitched in his smile, trying hard not to laugh out loud at the boy’s bad imitation. “So that’s what did this to you?”

            Harry stuck out his tongue in embarrassment and nodded.

            “What did you do to it then? Bully it into submission, or did it just not like you?”

            Harry pouted. He did not like that lame joke.

            “Sorry, little one,” Severus grinned. “Did it kick you or something?”

            Harry nodded, almost in tears as he remembered Salazar’s mean kick that almost sent him flying.

            “Then we will get ice for that too. Would you like me to kiss it to make it feel better?”

            Harry grinned bashfully and nodded as he couldn’t help feeling how charming it was for his Master to say that.

            Severus sat him down and knelt down at his feet, pressing a kiss to the bruise. “No more horses for you, pet.”

            Harry giggled and gave him a “You’re so overprotective” look. It wasn’t like the horse had traumatized him or made him have a phobia for horses or anything. He had to admit, it was his own fault after all for offending Salazar in the first place.

            “I just don’t want a broken pet, is all,” Severus said as he kissed his head. Neville finally came over with the ice and he dismissed him before continuing. “Remus will come to our house from now on. You are never going there without me again. Every part of you, from the tip of your head to the end of your toes, is precious to me, and I love every single one of them. It’ll break my heart to even see a hair missing from your head. You know I love you, don’t you, pet? I just want the best for you.”

            Harry gave him an understanding nod and wrapped his arms around Severus’ neck, kissing his ear and hugging him close. He knew that. He knew all that. And his feelings towards him were mutual. Severus didn’t have to tell him twice.

            Besides, he agreed that he would never want to face Lucius without Severus ever again.

            Lucius truly scared him.


	12. Chapter 12

            After Severus had left, Draco was a little at a lost. As he took Remus back into his bedroom, he was wondering whether or not he should carry on with the punishment. He knew that his godfather would’ve wanted it, even though his mouth said he didn’t, and he knew he had ways of finding out whether or not Draco was did as he was told. He was torn between hurting his love and obeying his godfather’s—the only person who ever treated him like a real son instead of his own father—wishes.

            “Do you think we should?”

            “Should what, Drake?” Remus asked curiously.

            “The punishment.”

            Remus scratched his chin awkwardly. “Oh, that. Well…”

            “Actually I cannot impose on you the full blame,” Draco tried to worm his way out of the situation. “I’m also the one to blame for distracting you. So if you feel you don’t want to be punished, I can always…make Uncle Sev think that you have.”

            “Well, technically speaking…I do feel guilty for what I’ve done. I suppose I do deserve a bit of reprimanding.”

            “OK…” Draco said, rubbing his hands together. He may be his father’s son and he may look like the apple that didn’t fall far from the tree, but he knew in his heart that he wasn’t cut out to be a mean master like his father. “What should I do? Should I starve you for a few days or hit you with a stick or slap you or…”

            “Spank me.”

            “What?” Draco was surprised. “You’re not a child anymore. Why should I treat you like one?”

            Remus looked away, not sure how to answer that.

            “Did Father ever…?” Draco asked, realizing where this notion was going.

            “One of his many fetishes,” Remus nodded. “Whenever he caught me doing something wrong, that would give him the excuse to do it during our ‘nightly games’. He calls it a befitting punishment for me.”

            “Are…Are you sure about this, Remy?” Draco was still apprehensive.

            “To be honest, I won’t feel better about myself if you didn’t do it.”

            “Oh, alright…But tell me when to stop, OK? I don’t want to hurt you too badly.”

            “Please don’t hold back. I’m fine.”

            So saying, Remus removed his pants and knelt beside the bed, laying his upper half of the body on the bed and baring his naked ass at Draco for him. Draco gulped at the sight and blushed a little. He couldn’t help feeling turned on by the beautiful fair skin that was his lover’s buttocks sticking out for him to see in all its glory. _Maybe I shouldn’t do anything to that pretty ass…_ Draco thought, trying to look away.

            “Hit me as hard as you can, Drake. I can handle it.”

            “Are you sure…” Draco asked, running his hand over the older man’s ass, making him shiver at his touch.

            “Just do it, Young Master.”

            Draco knew that when he called him that, he meant business. He finally took a deep breath and let his hand come down smacking Remus as hard as he could. He was startled at the sound, unable to believe that he was actually doing it. Remus bit his lip as he felt the sting, clutching the bed sheet tightly while Draco let another fly, making his bottom red. Remus tried to think of something irrelevant in particular because the pain was making him feel aroused involuntarily. He had Lucius to blame for that. Not only was his ex-Master very interested in Muggle forms of sexual excitement such as bondage, sex toys and S&M, he was also very interested in spanking, especially when Lucius himself was a fan of capital punishment himself. He had seen Lucius slap or cane his son once in a while if he thought he misbehaved in his standards, and he had also witnessed him beating the hired help to the point of near death whenever they made a mistake, or whenever he was in a bad mood or had a lot to drink. To him, seeing someone going red from his beating was very arousing, and during many of their sexual games, he would use any sort of mistake—no matter how small—he could find on Remus and used that as an excuse to ‘punish’ him. He would bring out a sort of spanking paddle he bought from the Muggle world just for that purpose and would spank him until he would sometimes go almost black and blue and unable to sit properly for weeks. Being trained to transfer pain to pleasure, his body began to become involuntarily ‘excited’ whenever his bottom was pulverized by the paddle, and now the spanking alone by Draco’s small hand was sending him into a fleet of wanting.

            Hit after hit came down. Draco himself was feeling aroused at the redness on Remus’ bottom, but it also made him feel sick at the arousal. Draco felt disgusted. How could he even think that spanking Remus would be enticing? How could he even consider any pleasure behind smacking Remus’ behind and watch it go redder and redder as he alternated between cheeks and in the middle? How could he even see Remus in an erotic way? Remus was in pain! He shouldn’t be taking pleasure in this! He had to stop before this gets any more absurd than it was. But somehow, he couldn’t stop. Not because Remus hadn’t told him to stop, but somehow it was because somewhere, deep inside him, he didn’t want this stop.

            Remus’ breath was starting to get erratic. His cock was impossibly hard and was starting to leak as the pain traveled from his ass all the way there. The pit of his stomach was tying itself into abnormally tight knots and he couls feel himself almost going to come from the pain and pleasure. At the 20th spank, he was going crazy. He had to stop before he lost control.

            “Please…Young Master…No more…”

            “I…I’m sorry, Remy,” Draco was brought back to reality and quickly pulled his hand back, his face flushed in red.

            “It’s OK…I’m alright now…I just…” Remus found it hard to continue. His whole body was shaking, trying hard to control himself and not come as the stinging lingered on his bright red bottom.

            “I got carried away,” Draco said, feeling rather bad now at the state he had caused Remus to be in. The bed sheets were hiding the older man’s huge erection though, so he had no idea what was really going on down there.

            “I’m fine…It’s my fault to begin with…” Remus replied, desperately wanting to touch himself and relieve him of the tightening pressure in his cock.

            “You can get up now, you know,” Draco said as he made a move to the bed, wondering why Remus was taking so long to recover. Did he really hurt him that bad?

            “I…I can’t…” Remus trembled as he panted. He was beyond pride now. He needed release and he needed it right this minute. “If I move, I’ll…”

            “Uh…” Draco didn’t get it at first, but then by the desperate tone of Remus and small wriggle of his hips as Remus tried in vain to get while controlling himself, the idea sunk in and made him blush. “Oh…OH! I thought I was the only one.”

            “F… Forgive me…Drake…I…I have to…”

            The older man couldn’t take it anymore. His hand quickly snaked downwards and started stroking himself furiously, begging for release.

            “Wait,” Draco ordered. “Lay on the ground.”

            Remus quickly did so, his hand still wrapped around his cock.

            “Now stroke yourself for me.”

            Remus obeyed, starting to pump himself vigorously, letting out moan after moan of ecstasy as he could feel himself getting closer and closer to the edge. His sore bottom rubbing against the carpet as he lay there stroking himself and fidgeting around intensified the feeling. Draco couldn’t help getting a hard-on just watching him that way and knew his lover was going to explode.

            “Come for me, Remus.”

            With one last stroke, Remus screamed Draco’s name as he came long and hard for him, spilling his cum all over his hand and onto his belly and chest. By the time he was done riding his tremors, Draco was smiling at him with his face blushed.

            “Enjoyed that?”

            “Yes…” Remus replied, panting.

            “So…” Draco raised an eyebrow. “You like being spanked?”

            “I…well…” Remus blushed as he got up slowly and cleaned himself with the tissue Draco accio-ed to him. “Your father kinda helped me grow into it…Wait, help is not the right word. ‘Made me’ or ‘forced me into it’ is better to describe it.”

            “Well then, I guess I am thankful for that, even if it’s just a little,” Draco commented as he straddled his hips, making sure he didn't get cum on his pants.

            “I guess,” Remus chuckled bashfully.

            “Now open my pants and take me out. Stroke me. It’s your turn to make me enjoy this. Take it as ‘extra punishment’.”

            Remus smiled and undid Draco’s pants, revealing Draco’s long-awaited hard-on and began stroking, his finger teasing the tip to make it leak with pre-cum. Draco whined at the feeling.

            “You’re still as sensitive as ever, Drake.”

            “You are the one that tainted me,” Draco said as he moved his hips to meet his strokes. “And, gods, I love it.”

            Remus continued stroking and teasing the cock with one hand while the other hand massages his balls. Draco mewled, his hands gripping Remus’ shoulder for support, in which Remus stroke him faster and harder.

            “You love it, don’t you? You love when I pump you like this?”

            “Yes,” Draco breathed as he took Remus’ hand that massaged the balls and sucked in some of the digits. Remus moaned at the feeling of his wet tongue around his fingers and stroked Draco even faster, feeling himself getting aroused.

            “Stroke me inside,” Draco asked, letting the fingers slipped out of his mouth in a deliberate fashion.

            “Are…Are you sure?” Remus asked back, a little surprised at Draco’s sudden boldness.

            “I want to get used to it again. I think your fingers would do OK.”

            “Alright,” Remus agreed as he made Draco go on all fours. “Just tell me to stop when you feel uncomfortable.”

            “I will,” Draco replied as he shivered, not from fear, but from excitement over Remus’ touch.

            Remus sucked his fingers to make them even wetter before slowly entering one finger inside. Draco tensed at first, then relaxed.

            “Tell me what you see, Remy. Make me hot.”

            “Mmh, you look so sexy, Drake,” Remus whispered as he ran his tongue along Draco’s spine. “Your muscles are clenching me, sucking me in, looks so erotic.”

            “More,” Draco moaned as he reached his hand back to stroke himself.

            “Very nice view here,” Remus continued as he slowly entered the second finger, kissing one of his butt cheeks, leaving a love-bite. “Your skin feels so soft and wet. I could just lick it out with my tongue just like that.”

            “Faster, dear gods…” Draco whined impatiently. Remus thrust his fingers into him faster, barely reaching the prostate where he knew the location through experience.

            “You want me to move in deeper, Drake?”

            “Yes, please,” Draco sobbed, his hand flying over to his cock to stroke it for release.

            “Your wish is my command, Young Master,” Remus replied as he inserted a third finger and thrust deeper, brushing against the sweet spot and occasionally pressing against it, driving the boy crazy. By the time he actually put real pressure on it, Draco was coming, screaming out his lover’s name before panting like someone who had run a 10-mile long marathon. He closed his eyes, tried to gather himself.

            “Was it good for you, Drake?” Remus asked as he picked Draco up and held him close to his chest, helping him calm down.

            “Yes…” Draco replied breathlessly. “And the best thing is that I don’t hear Mother and Father and their obnoxious noises.”

            “I won’t let them. I’ll never let them invade our private moments no matter what. I swear by my own blood as a half-werewolf.”

            “Thank you,” Draco smiled faintly, then took Remus’ chin. “Make me yours again.”

            Remus knew what that meant. The union that he had been waiting for ever since that fateful first night. But not now. Not tonight. They had enough excitement for one day now and the time was screaming for them to go to bed.

            “I will. Next time I guarantee I will. For now, we rest,” Remus said as he cleaned off all traces of cum before carrying Draco bridal style as he always liked it to be and put him on bed before lying down beside him.

            “But I want it now,” Draco pouted, his body betraying his mind as he yawned, obviously tired out of his head.

            “Next time, Drake. Next time, I promise. You’re tired. Now go to sleep. You have school tomorrow, you know,” Remus reminded as he pulled the covers over him, tucking him in nicely.

            “Fine,” Draco relented, finally admitting that he _was_ tired. “You will stay with me, right?”

            “I will,” Remus nodded. “I’m yours now. I’ll never leave your side, ever.”

            Draco smiled in content as he closed his eyes and snuggled to his chest, falling asleep within minutes. It had been a long day for everyone. Remus kissed his forehead before falling asleep as well.

            “Sweet dreams, my little Young Master.”


	13. Chapter 13

            “Master, the toy builders are here.”

            “Thank you, Creevey. Send them over here.”

            Harry perked at the word ‘toy’ while brushing Leo’s mane. Ever since Harry gotten Leo the lion plushie doll from Draco, he wouldn’t go anywhere without it, not even when he was doing his usual chores in the house. Whenever he woke up to start his day, he would fashion a sort of makeshift baby carrier using long pieces of old rags sewn together to tie and carry Leo on his back so that he could do his chores and have it by his side, almost like a baby being carried on his back. He would go about his business making the bed, serving meals, tending the garden with Neville, cleaning the rooms, helping Severus to get ready for work and doing other necessary chores with Leo never leaving his thin frame, and whenever chance he got, he would untie the makeshift baby carrier and play with it. By the end of the day, he would go to sleep on the couch—or on the bed if Severus allowed him to sleep with him (which was almost always)—hugging Leo in his arms.

            Severus was a little jealous at first for Harry to spend so much attention to the doll. He had a right mind to confiscate the doll and return it back to Draco, but the thought of Harry being upset and crying for his Leo stopped him at his tracks. There were a few times when he tried to separate Leo from Harry for a number of excuses, but Harry didn’t buy it and would whine whenever Severus tried to pry or pull the doll away from the boy’s hand. Whenever he wanted to force the issue and exert his authority as a master for Harry to obey him, Harry would immediately cry a pool of tears and would run off to hide somewhere in the big mansion and it often took more than an hour before he could find him. Even when he waited for Harry to fall soundly asleep and tried taking the doll away, Harry would automatically whine in his sleep and hugged Leo in a death grip. Severus finally gave up trying and thought that it was pointless to be jealous of an inanimate object. When Severus asked how he knew how to create that makeshift baby carrier, Harry showed him a magazine that he found in Severus’ study. Severus recognized it as one of the magazines he confiscated from a student he caught reading during Potions class. He flipped through the pages and Harry pointed at a picture of a mother carrying a baby on her back using the same design of the makeshift baby carrier while hanging out the clothes, and as he read through the article, it was talking about motherhood in the olden days of Japan and remembered that the student whom he confiscated the magazine from was of Japanese-decent and remembered her saying that she borrowed it from her sister who was expecting and hoped in vain that he would return the magazine to her. The next day, he subtly returned the magazine to her with a warning and went to Diagon Alley to buy a real baby carrier for Harry so that he didn’t have to trouble himself making it all the time. As expected, Harry gave him the biggest, most grateful smile and used that baby carrier ever since.

            Severus waited until Colin nodded and left to do his bidding before asking, “Harry, would you like to have your own playhouse like Draco’s?”

            Harry was shocked, his eyes totally screaming ‘Why the sudden gesture?’

            “I know it’s a bit sudden, but since you have made heads over heels in love with you, I think it’s about time I started treating you as a lover and not as a slave anymore. And lovers make each other happy, right? So I thought, since you had so much fun playing in Draco’s playhouse, I was wondering if you’d like to have a playhouse of your own. Is that alright with you?”

            Harry was totally speechless. He didn’t know what to say or do to express his utmost delight and how touched he was by Severus’ notion.

            “Shall I take that as a no and send them away?”

            “Ah! Ah!” Harry shook his head and hugged Severus hurriedly, not wanting him to go off and send away the people that would give him the best present he could ever have in his life. Severus chuckled, glad that Harry accepted his gift as the toy builders were led out by Colin to the garden where Severus and Harry were.

            “You called for Underhill Fine Toy Makers, sir?”

            “Ah yes, of course,” Severus said as he introduced Harry to them. “This is Harry James Potter and I need you to build a playhouse for him. He can’t really talk, so if you would show him some brochures about your playhouse samples, he can point it out for you or you can ask him if he wants it to be custom-made. All expenses are on me.”

            The toy builders looked at each other discreetly as they produced their brochures and catalogues. They could tell by the looks of it that this boy was no son of his, but a slave from the business. They knew Severus by reputation and they have heard their boss talking to his friends when Severus made the call about him having certain affairs with a sex slave a master shouldn’t have. They thought they were just making up some workplace gossip, but now that they saw in the flesh the little boy their boss spoke so intently of and the way Severus splurged his money for him, they knew that there was some truth in the ‘gossips’ they made. Of course, they didn’t say anything about it. The last thing they’d want to offend is an important—and rich—client like Severus Snape.

            So, with Harry’s trusty gleaming eyes and facial expressions, the toy builders made a list of all the things they needed to build for his playhouse. They showed him some designs he wanted to put on his playhouse and Harry pointed out the ones that he liked. He decided to have his playhouse custom-made with harmonic colours of red, yellow, green and silver to match with it, and to make the design as close as Draco’s playhouse as possible. From his memory of playing in Draco’s playhouse, he pointed out what kind of roof, door, windows and walls, and occasionally Severus chipped in helping him to decide on miscellaneous settings on the playhouse. Even though Harry was content with having a single-storey playhouse like Draco, Severus insisted on making it a double-storey, stating that he want the best of everything the toy builders can offer in their services. Harry picked out some interesting toys he wanted to add into his playhouse and the toy builders wrote it all down in their checklist.

            “Add a train set and 50 different species of stuffed animals as well,” Severus said as he pointed at one of the catalogues displayed on the outdoor table, earning a bewildered look from the men. Needless to say that they thought he must’ve been insane to lash this much money on a slave.

            For once, Harry agreed to their notion. He shook his head and showed him Leo, telling him with his eyes that this was all he needed. There was no need for such extravagant lengths to please him.

            “Are you sure, Harry?”

            Harry nodded hard, hugging Leo and nuzzling it to emphasize his point.

            “Alright then. Cancel out the stuffed animals. But the train set must be included. Anything else, pet?”

            Harry thought for a moment, then looked at the brochures and catalogues again and finally shook his head. He gave him a peck on Severus’ face, indicating that everything was just enough for him.

            “Then that will be all. We will inform you when we want additional items to be included. I expect you will start the construction of the playhouse as soon as possible?”

            “We will get all the necessary materials from our shop,” one of the toy builders replied. “We will start work on it first thing tomorrow morning.”

            “Very well, then. I will see you gentlemen tomorrow.”

            The men nodded and left, following Colin’s lead as he sent them out the door. Harry, as soon as they left, leapt up and huggled Severus.

            “Love,” Harry giggled. He wanted to say ‘I love you’, but it seemed that he could only go that far.

            “Love you too, little one. Hungry?”

            Harry’s stomach growled before he could respond. He stuck out his tongue in embarrassment.

            “That does not answer me,” Severus teased.

            “Mah…!” Harry pouted, shaking Severus’ arms as his stomach growled again.

            Severus chuckled and ruffled the little boy’s head. Sometimes it felt nice to tease him once in a while and see his reaction. On his way to the dining room with Harry and Leo in his arms, he just so happened to pass by Neville and asked him to get him some fruits for Harry and himself. Flashing a naughty grin at his little quiet friend, he quickly walked off to do his Master’s bidding. Within moments, Neville and a kitchen girl came into the dining room with a big fruit bowl filled with all kinds of fruits available and a pitcher of whole cream milk with glasses for the both of them. As soon as they excused themselves, Harry, who was seated on Severus’ lap as usual, reached over to take some grapes. Ever since they started working on their relationship, Severus always asked Harry to sit on his lap and allowed him to take the food to feed himself instead of always having to wait for Severus and eat off his hands. Severus took a piece of melon and started eating slowly, savouring the taste while watching Harry munch away at his grapes, a few strawberries, a banana and a couple of cranberries. If Severus were to name any of his favourite sights on Harry, this would be one of them.

            After popping another cranberry into his mouth, he took a huge piece of watermelon and bit into it heartily, making the juice trickle down his mouth and chin. Severus licked his lip before leaning down and licked the juice off his chin. Harry mewled as he felt Severus’ tongue on his chin, giving access to Severus as he licked up to his lips and kissed him. Harry moaned a little as he eased into the kiss, twirling one strand of Severus’ hair in his fingers and slowly kissed him back. His hunger totally forgotten and replaced with a different sort of hunger, Severus set the fruit down and began kissing his little lover in earnest.

            “Mah…Love…” Harry breathed those words over and over again as he kissed his Master passionately. Severus reached out and pinched his nipple through the soft huge adult-sized shirt he was wearing, making the boy gasp and whine at the feeling.

            “You like?” Severus whispered in his ear. “Do you want more?”

            Harry bit his finger and blushed, a little embarrassed to say anything, looking away shyly.

            “So you want me to stop?” Severus asked, taking his hand away.

            Harry hesitated for a moment before taking Severus’ hand that pinched his nipple and started licking and sucking the fingers erotically. Severus groaned, closing his eyes as the younger boy continued by sucking the middle finger before running his tongue along it towards the gap between fingers, teasing it with the tip of his wet tongue. Severus hissed at the feeling, wanting so badly for Harry to give him head. But he would not make him. One thing he learnt since their first intimate night together was that he would always respect his lover’s wishes and would not make the first move unless the boy wanted him to. After all, he vowed not to treat him any less. Harry was his lover, not his slave after all.

            Harry heard Severus’ hiss and looked up while carrying on sucking and licking, giving him a “Do you want me?” look.

            “Only if you want to, Harry. I will not force you, my little pet.”

            Harry gave his love a sort of naughty yet child-like seductive smile and climbed slowly off Severus’ lap, going down on his knees and sucked the fabric that held Severus’ manhood captive, his lips putting pressure on the cock behind it as he bit it teasingly. Quickly, Severus whispered a locking charm with his wand on the dining room door and a silencing shield all over the room so that no one could hear them and barge in unannounced. He needed his privacy after all. The last thing he wanted was having the hired help eavesdropping on them expecting a free show. Harry continued to tease him by sucking the fabric harder and used his teeth instead of his lips to bit lightly on the throbbing length.

            “Fucking hell,” Severus groaned as he gripped the chair, almost losing it. “Stop teasing, pet.”

            Harry giggled and released Severus’ cock from its confines, letting the cold air whip against the hot flesh. He started off by running his tongue from the hilt all the way up to the tip, carefully spreading his saliva in alignment.

            “So good, pet,” Severus sighed, finally feeling alive in many ways than one.

            Harry started taking the tip of his shaft into his mouth, sucking it like a popsicle.

            “Good…Ah…” Severus clenched his hands tighter onto the arms of the chair, enjoying every moment of it.

            Harry bobbed his head in and out as he took more and more of Severus’ cock in his mouth, pumping the rest of the length that he couldn't swallow. Severus ran his hand through Harry’s hair, his cock feeling as if it had swollen into an impossible size. Despite it being unruly and pretty messed up—surprisingly no matter how Severus tried to brush it down, it just wouldn’t stay still and neat—it felt silky smooth, like the feeling of new satin bed sheets freshly bought and opened from its package. He could never get enough of the feeling of Harry’s black ebonies. All that lovely satin-like tresses and his sparkling jade-green eyes as the boy looked up at him to meet his own black orbs occasionally as he continued to blow him was unbelievable. While Harry relaxed his throat and took Severus’ entirely to the hilt and started deep-throating him, licking him in intervals, he noticed that the boy’s ‘little brother’ looked like it wanted in on this excitement.

            “Stroke yourself under your shirt, pet.”

            Harry did so, letting go of his hand that once held the huge man meat to reach under his shirt and under his underwear to stroke himself, humming in pleasure while continuing to deep-throat him and licking him in intervals. His other free hand reached over to massage his Master’s balls.

            “So good, pet. I’m going to come soon.”

            Harry moved faster as he tried to stroke himself aligned with the speed of his own deep-throating.

            “Almost, almost. Harder, pet, faster…”

            Harry gave it all he got, sucking and deep-throating him as hard and as fast as he could, his body trembling as he could feel himself getting close as well, what with the extra stimulation of his Master’s pre-cum taste in his mouth and his Master’s moan in his ears. He let out a moan as he could feel the familiar tightening in the pit of his stomach, the vibration from his voice setting off Severus to the edge.

            “Oh, fucking gods!!!” Severus could barely hold back his scream as he came into Harry’s mouth, his hands automatically pulling Harry even deeper onto his squirting cock. The taste of Severus’ cum caused the boy to come as well, trembling as he both tried to swallow as much as he can while squirting out his own load all over the floor. Severus closed his eyes as he shivered and his head lolled back as he felt himself unloading the last of his seed. Harry took it all in, gasping as he swllaowed the last drop before leaning against Severus’ thigh, panting as he, too, rode out his own orgasmic tremors.

            “Thank you,” Severus whispered, lifting his weak arm to pet Harry.

            Harry mewled softly before falling asleep with his head against Severus’ thigh in that position, his hands flopped between his legs and him sitting on his knees almost like the Japanese way. After Severus regained composure, he magicked away all traces of their activity, removed the locking charm from the door and the silencing shield from the room before carrying the sleeping Harry to the bedroom and laid him down on the bed before laying next to him. Harry instinctively wriggled closer to Severus’ chest and sucked his thumb as he slept.

            For once, Harry forgot to hug Leo in his arms to bed.


	14. Chapter 14

            The next day, as promised, the toy builders from Underhill Fine Toy Makers came to Severus’ manor to start construction of the playhouse. With their tools and necessary material, they were led into one of the guestrooms in the manor and made it into Harry’s personal playroom. After deciding the layouts on what should go where, Severus ordered the hired help to clear out everything that was in it to be sold out as secondhand or donated to charity or to be given away to whomever in the manor wanted it to make way for the builders to come in and do their job. Severus reminded them to make the playhouse a double-storey and watched for a while how they worked. He even called in some interior designers to overlook the room and figure out how to create the perfect playroom for Harry to have fun in. With the promise of high pay plus tips from Severus, they worked almost a week to put the playroom into completion. Right now, they were making the finishing touches to what would be the perfect playroom any child would dream to have.

            Such is a man who would do anything for his little pet.

            Harry, after doing his daily chores, peeked in to see the final construction, not wanting to alert anybody. He was raking up the fallen autumn leaves that morning when Severus’ white owl Hedwig came in with an official letter from Hogwarts. Harry didn’t know how to read, of course, but judging by the seal that was on the letter, he could tell that this was an important letter and must be given immediately to his Master. He passed the rake to Neville and bounded off inside the house to look for Severus, and with the help of Colin’s direction, found himself standing in front of the door of the room where the toy builders and the interior designers were fixing up the room just for him. He couldn’t help but sneak inside to take a look at what the other adults were doing hammering and sawing and talking away, doing what they did best.

            After supervising the workers, he was about to leave when he saw Harry looking at the toolbox with interest. He smiled and walked towards him and was about to pick him up in his arms when he saw him pick up a mini-saw from the toolbox. His mind went into full protective panic mode as he made his way quickly to him, praying to gods of all religion that his beloved pet doesn’t cut himself with it.

            “Set that down,” Severus said suddenly from behind, startling the poor boy into dropping the saw, scratching his foot with the tip of the jagged blade.

            “Ah!”

            “Shit,” Severus was right by him in a flash. “Are you hurt?”

            Harry shook his head and hid the scratch with the letter he was supposed to give Severus, not wanting his Master to get mad at him.

            “You are not to touch those tools, you hear me?”

            Severus sounded stern in his words, but his face was etched with worry, so Harry knew that Severus was more concerned about him than being angry about him playing around with the toolbox. Harry nodded and gave him a “I’m sorry” look.

            “Now, are you hurt?”

            Harry moved the letter away to show him the scratch.

            “Thank goodness it is only a scratch. Let get it cleaned up. And what’s that you’re holding?”

            Harry passed him the letter, remembering why he wanted to look for Severus. The older man took the letter and gestured Harry to follow him back to his room. Harry followed behind him obediently, not making any fuss. In the bedroom, Severus made a beeline to the bathroom to get a jar of instant cure cream from the bathroom drawer and went to Harry who was standing there waiting for him.

            “Up on the bed, pet.”

            Harry obeyed, sitting on the bed with his feet dangling lazily a few meters off the floor. It seemed like throughout the half year he was in Severus’ care, he hadn’t grown much. Maybe a few centimeters taller, but not much obvious in difference. Severus knelt down and dabbed a bit of the cream on the scratch on the foot before rubbing it on, spreading the cream all over it. The scratch went away almost immediately and the foot soon looked like nothing had ever happened to it. He kissed it before standing up to put away the cream. When he came back, Harry was smiling at him, giving him a “Thank you” look. Severus smiled back and sighed. He couldn’t stay angry with his lovely pet even if he tried.

            “Now you go near those tools again or anything else that doesn’t belong to you, I will paddle your behind. I don’t want you to get hurt, Harry, you know that.”

            Harry kissed Severus’ hooked nose, promising he won’t ever do it again. Severus ruffled his head and sat beside him while he tore open the letter Harry gave him and read it.

            “Hmm. Looks like I have to go to a meeting soon. I am summoned to the Ministry to discuss something urgent. Guess I’ll have to leave you alone at home for a while,” Severus rolled his eyes tiredly at the thought of having to discuss trivial matters with boring old hags and geezers. “Will you be a good boy while I’m gone and not go anywhere near those dangerous things again?”

            Harry nodded, giving him a “I promise” look.

            “After this meeting I want you in the bed—naked.”

            Harry blushed at Severus’ seductive grin. So typical of his Master to think of pleasure before work.

            “I will take you fast after I get home from this Ministry summon meeting, so you better be ready when I get home.”

            Harry pouted as he went redder than a tomato, giving him the “Don't tease me” mock glare.

            “Be prepared,” Severus grinned as he pulled Harry’s chin to him, kissing him hard. Severus ran his hand up Harry’s leg, showing him a preview of what he would do to him once he came home after his meeting, making Harry’s breath hitch as the boy shivered at the older man’s touch. Somehow, as Severus pulled back to trace his pet’s lips, a question began nagging within his heart ever since they got together with a sober mind, begging to be answered.

            “Pet, do you like sex or do you just do it because you want to make me happy?”

            Harry tried to answer him but didn’t know how.

            “Blink once for the first one and twice for the second.”

            Harry thought for a moment, then blinked three times.

            “OK, what does that mean?”

            Harry tried to tell him what he meant, but he could not form the words he wanted to get the meaning across. Frustrated, he grabbed a nearby pillow and threw it to the carpeted floor, letting out an exasperated whine.

            “Stop acting like that, Harry, and act your age,” Severus scolded as he picked the pillow up. “So what you’re saying is that you’re only doing it for me, but at the same time you like it as well?”

            Harry nodded timidly.

            “I was hoping it would not be that way,” Severus sighed.

            Harry gave him a questioning look.

            “I want you to want it too, not just because I want to.”

            Harry shook his head hard, then pointed to himself aggressively and nodded, telling him that he wanted sex just as much as his Master did. He wanted to tell him that he would never do anything he didn’t want and would never have let him do him if he didn’t even want Severus to go anywhere near him. All that they have been through in bed was consensual. Nothing was forced between them. But seeing that Harry was in a vocal disadvantage, he could only hope that his Master was able to understand what he was trying to convey.

            “But you do it because I want to.”

            Harry sighed, feeling upset and dismayed that his Master just didn’t get it. If the speech teacher that Severus called to come over and teach him how to talk didn’t call back in the last minute to say that he had a little delay in transportation and would only come around next month, he would’ve been smooth talking all the way and have a normal conversation with his Master by now. He flashed him a “Don't you have a meeting to attend to?” look on his face before lying on the bed, back facing him and blinking back his tears of disappointment and frustration.

            “Yes, I need to go,” Severus sighed as he ran a hand down Harry’s back, knowing the tense situation between them due to Harry’s speech impediment and knew better than to push the matter. “Be good, pet.”

            Harry waited until he couldn’t hear Severus’ footsteps anymore before pouring his heart out, sobbing on the pillows as Severus left the manor with a heavy heart.

\--:--

            “Ah, good afternoon, Severus. So glad you could join us.”

            Severus nodded and walked towards the round table where everyone was seated in the meeting room. Every higher member in the Ministry was there, including Albus Dumbledore, Cornelius Fudge and Lucius Malfoy. According to the letter that was given to Harry, he had been summoned to the Ministry of Magic to attend a sort of official hearing and that he had to go there immediately without fail. To think that he would be summoned on a Saturday afternoon when he was supposed to be at home overseeing the finishing touches of Harry’s playroom and shagging Harry senseless on the bed and stay on the bed all day doing nothing in particular, but who was he to disobey orders coming from the Ministry of Magic itself? He might as well brave it and get over and done with.

            “May I ask why I was summoned?” Severus asked, not sitting down.

            “That you will have to personally hear it from Cornelius himself,” Albus said as he gestured Severus to sit on the chair, which seemed to be the only seat empty at the other end of the table facing Cornelius. He waited until Severus actually sat down before continuing, “Cornelius, if you please.”

            “I come to understand that you have purchased a slave,” Cornelius voiced out. Everyone, including Lucius, sat and listened in silence. “I will not question the source of your purchase, since we have leniently allowed the upper classes to possess slaves as long as they stay within the Human Labour Rights Act jurisdiction. But as you know, according to some of the old laws that still holds true when it comes to slavery, Mr. Snape, slaves, especially sexual ones, are public property and should be treated as such. Regardless whosoever bought the slave, other people are allowed to use them as they see fit. You are either to not interfere or participate in their activities. That is the customary law of slavery.”

            “I am aware of that, Minister Fudge,” Severus nodded gravely. “But it still remains that I bought him. Whether or not I wish to share him with other people is of my personal freedom and interest. They have no right to invade my property without my express permission.”

            “True, but according to the law of slavery, it is the master’s responsibility to train and discipline the slave and make them behave in an appropriate manner. Your slave had acted out at Mr. Malfoy by striking back at him when he was making advances to him. He did not abide the law of slavery and you did not make him aware that he should abide by it. In fact, you have ordered him to bite Mr. Malfoy when it was clearly stated in the books that other masters are allowed to have their way with the slaves. Not only did you not abide to the rules of slaves being public property, you did not abide to the rules of disciplining and training your slave accordingly.”

            “Lucius should not have touched him,” Severus replied simply. “Besides, you claim that it is my responsibility to train and discipline my slave, and I am training him as I see fit. I have done nothing wrong in that.”

            “I agree with Severus,” Albus raised his hand to second the motion. “In fact, the boy was only acting upon his Master’s command. Isn’t that what slaves are supposed to do? Obey their masters?”

            “Unfortunately, it was the wrong sort of order to begin with. It had clashed with more rules than one in the book. Firstly, the slave bit someone without abiding the public property factor. Secondly, the master did not train accordingly to what the public property factor clearly stated and thirdly, the master himself did not abide the rules of the public property factor. It is something that we cannot stand by and watch it happen without doing anything. Do you know the punishment of such negligence, Mr. Snape?”

            “Allow me to refresh his memory, Cornelius,” Lucius voiced out after a moment’s silence. “Severus, failure to discipline your slave and allowing it to attack someone is punishable by isolation.”

            “Who? Me or my slave?” Severus asked, his heart starting to clench with worry while he tried to keep a straight face.

            “Why, your slave, of course. He has to be taken away from you to be made example of to other slaves and masters so as not to repeat the same mistake.”

            “I very much agree with Mr. Malfoy. We believe it is best if he is put under the care of Hogwarts for the time being,” a woman voiced out. Severus turned to that voice and saw that it was the dreaded, power-hungry and overly eccentric Ms. Dolores Umbridge. He had worked with her for a while when he was still a teacher trainee training under the Ministry office. It sickened him to sit all day helping her out with her paperwork in her creepy pink office with plates of mewing kittens as her wall décor and the way she spoke in that rather overly sugar-coated but full of pretense tone as she addressed her co-workers and her sadistic way of delivering punishment to her students while she became a substitute professor for Prof. Flitwick when he took a sick leave for a month was all he could tolerate.

            “I concur with Ms. Umbridge,” Cornelius seconded the motion. “You are not fit to be his master anymore. He must be put under another’s care.”

            “The hell he is!” Severus slammed his hands on the table. “I bought him with my money. There is either you have to buy him from me or give me another!”

            “That’s the whole point of the punishment, Severus, for not disciplining him,” Lucius said. “We will take him from you even if it means by force and you don’t get another slave.”

            “I will not allow it! I do not want yours or anyone else’s filthy hands on my Harry!”

            “Excuse me, if I may intervene,” Albus tapped his side of the table to get everyone’s attention. “Aren’t you all forgetting the other crucial reason why we are asking Severus to release Harry to Hogwarts’ care?”

            “Ah, yes, of course,” Cornelius nodded. “If it would make Mr. Snape feel any better about his punishment, then you tell him.”

            Albus nodded and accio-ed a piece of paper from the secretary’s table at the side to Severus, saying, “We’ve received this from Lucius the other day after he and a few other party members went through some personal belongings of your slave’s deceased parents. Apparently he claimed to have received the late Potter couple’s personal effects from an anonymous source who found it while doing a sort of onsite survey before building demolition.”

            “Sounds like our typical prying sneak Lucius,” Severus grumbled.

            “It is a will and testimony of James Potter and Lily Evans,” Lucius continued from where Albus left off. “It was their express wish that they would want their child to be under the care of Hogwarts. My source told me that based arrest records, the place where he found this will, among others, was in fact the secret hide-out of Tom Marvolo Riddle after he escaped from Azkaban. Apparently the Riddle convict managed to locate this after assassinating them and took it with him, hiding it in his home when he was on the run. Probably for sentiment purposes, like a trophy of sorts.”

            “Your point being?” Severus sighed.

            “Our point is,” Cornelius butted in, “that he will be taken from you and given to Hogwarts as stated in their will and testimony. According to Legal Affairs, any will and testimony written by the deceased must be carried out to rule and in the strictest of procedures. You cannot deny a parent’s wishes to have the best for their child now, can you?”

            “But that’s not fair!” Severus tried to protest. “You produced this at the last minute without notice! If credits about the Potters being school celebrities and good contributors of society were true, you would’ve found this will earlier instead of allowing Harry to live such a miserable life with his Muggle relatives and forced him into this life, not now! Who knows if Lucius had fabricated that will?!”

            “Sadly, the papers are legit,” Albus said regretfully. “We have done all testing and asked all relevant people regarding the making of this will and they all confirmed that it is genuine. I cannot explain why it took so long to find this will, but the will clearly states that your slave’s parents wished him to be at the care of Hogwarts. As much as I pity your plight, I’m sorry to say that I have to comply on that. It is the law after all.”

            Severus wanted to retaliate but once Albus had fallen in synch and in line with the meeting’s motives, he knew he was fighting a losing battle. He lowered his head and asked quietly, “Is there…anything I can do…?”

            “I wish I could say there is, but my hands are tied on this matter. You can, however, choose who you would like your slave to be under the care of.”

            “Severus doesn’t have the right to choose! He is being punished here!” Lucius protested.

            “Shut the hell up, Lucius!” Severus snapped back at him as they both sported the same cold angry glare at each other.

            “Ah, but I am the Headmaster of Hogwarts,” Albus reminded the blonde, “and as long as I run it, I can call the shots. Wouldn’t you agree, Cornelius?”

            “Yes, that is true,” Cornelius agreed grudgingly. “What do you say, Mr. Snape?”

            “I…want him to stay with me, his Master.”

            “No, Severus. What I meant was you can choose who to look after him while he is in Hogwarts. You have to abide to the will, Severus.”

            “Separation, remember?” Lucius looked at him smugly. “You don’t get to keep that boy anymore, Severus. That’s what the whole punishment is about.”

            “Then I choose you, Albus,” Severus said after sending a death glare to Lucius. “You will take my place as his Master. I trust you would call the shots enough to accept it.”

            “Well I am flattered,” Albus smiled. “What say you, members of the Ministry? Cornelius?”

            “I am fine with that,” Cornelius replied, with the rest of the members either nodding or muttering their agreement.

            “Lucius?” Albus turned to the blonde.

            Lucius grumbled, grudgingly agreed.

            “Well then, I will come to your house personally this weekend to take the boy off your hands.”

            “No, Albus,” Cornelius objected. “You will go and pick him up today in one hour.”

            “Why so soon?” Severus asked, fighting the urge to strangle the old fat coot who calls himself a Minister.

            “Why give you the pleasure of keeping him any longer than you should?” Lucius raised a sarcastic brow.

            “Not another word from you, Malfoy, or I swear…” Severus wanted to retaliate but was stopped by Cornelius raising his hand.

            “The sooner the better, Mr. Snape, or it wouldn’t be punishment at all.”

            “Unfortunately I have a little urgent business to attend to in school,” Albus noted. “You know how it is with the children. Besides, Severus needs to explain things to the slave and give him a proper goodbye. How about a day? A day should be fine at least.”

            “Well…I suppose that will do,” Cornelius replied after much consideration. “But not an hour more.”

            “Very well, a day it is,” Severus stood up, smiling gently at Albus, who in turn smiled back at him kindly. “I will return home to break the news to Harry.”

            “I’ll see you tomorrow then for the boy, Severus. Meeting adjourned everyone?”

            Everyone nodded and started getting off their seats to leave the room. Severus nodded, acknowledging Albus before getting out of the room quickly. Lucius followed behind Severus, an aura of gloating following behind his wake.

            “Well, how does it feel being reprimanded? It’s been a while since I seen you cower like this in a meeting. The last time I saw you cower was when you had that brawl with Kiaran Featherworth, Senior Head of the Information Department and was being told off right at your face at last year’s Ministry AGM.”

            Severus stopped but didn’t turn around as he replied him in an icy cold voice, “Away, Malfoy, or you will not be seeing another day.”

            “Touchy, aren’t we? I think the statement should be reserved for your slave, Snivellus.”

            Severus immediately took out his wand and brandished it dangerously at Lucius’ jugular, holding the blonde’s gaze in a death look. “I hope one of your slaves snuffs out your pathetic life, Lucius, because it is not worth existing.”

            “Temper, temper,” Lucius said as he took out his wand to push away Severus’. “You’re not worth my breath anyway. Just remember who you have to be grateful for that got you that slave while it lasted.”

            With that, the blonde walked off, leaving Severus standing there alone trying to regain control. He took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. One false move and he would’ve have fallen into the temptation of killing Lucius with his bare hands. Quickly, he stomped out of the Ministry of Magic building, got on his carriage and told the horseman to send him home.

            He half-wished that his ride home today would last forever, instead of having to face what was coming for him once he was home.


	15. Chapter 15

            Severus’ heart felt like it had just sunken into the bottom of the sea as the carriage stopped right in the front yard of his manor. He saw Harry near the window of where the playroom was as he got off from the carriage and could tell that the finishing touches were completed and that Harry was enjoying his new room. His mind wrestled internally as to how he was going to put what just happened in the meeting into words that his beloved pet was able to accept. There is nothing worse than having to break the bad news to a loved one, and Severus had begun to understand how Muggles soldiers during the World War felt when they had to tell the family of their fallen comrades or subordinates that they have been either dead or had gone M.I.A.

            Harry, on the other hand, could feel through sixth sense and experience that his Master had returned home. After Severus left, he went back to watching the people working at the playroom, but kept his promise to touch nothing. A couple more hours later, the toy builders and the interior designers finished doing their job and let Harry to have his first debut of the playroom before Colin led them out and paid them with the money Severus had entrusted to him. Harry sulked as he thought about the little argument they had before Severus left for his meeting, but at least he remembered Severus’ request. As much as he wanted to not obey the request, he knew his Master’s word was law. He had to comply unless his Master said otherwise. Besides, it has been a while since they really got it down and dirty. Maybe their ‘get-together’ might brighten things up. Putting down whatever toy he was playing and tottering to the bedroom, he stripped himself naked and laid under the covers, waiting for his Master to come claim him.

            Severus came in and went to see Harry at the playroom but couldn’t find him there. As he looked around the playroom for inspection, he remembered briefly that he had asked Harry to be naked and waiting in the bedroom. Everything in the playroom was exactly how he wanted to be and more, and the toys that he had ordered to include in the playroom were all there. Satisfied with the job well done, he made his way to his bedroom and sure enough, he saw the little lump under the covers that was Harry.

            “Pet…”

            Harry peeked out for a moment before hiding back into the covers. _Still sulking about this morning, I suppose,_ Severus thought.

            “We need to talk, Harry. Take the covers off your head.”

            Harry hesitated for a while before pulling down the covers to his chin.

            “I…I have ruined everything for us,” Severus whispered, leaning down to kiss his forehead.

            Harry gave him a confused look. Why the sudden change of attitude?

            “I should not have let you go over to Draco’s. I’m so sorry, pet…” Severus kissed his forehead again as he spoke in a choked voice, his lips trembling as a few tears seeped out and clung onto his short lashes.

            “Mah…?” Harry cupped Severus’ face in his hands, his eyes asking why he was crying.

            “I love you, pet, remember that.”

            Harry didn’t understand what his Master was trying to say to him. Why was Severus being so angst all of a sudden? Why did he just cry for a moment there? What happened exactly in the meeting that caused him to have such a drastic change in attitude? Harry sat up and wrapped his arms around his neck, demanding to know what was going on. The blanket fell down to his waist as he sat up, revealing his almost ivory fair skin and those pair of beautifully-shaped nipples Severus was aching to taste, but he wasn’t in a mood, not in this circumstances where his heart was slowly shattering into pieces.

            “You will be taken good care of. Albus will be kind and gentle to you.”

            Harry widened his eyes, shocked at the sudden words his Master just spoke. Was he throwing him away? Was he going to abandon him? But he promised! He promised he would never leave him no matter what. His facial expression was screaming for an explanation.

            “Lucius is getting back at me for you biting him. I tried to talk them out of it but…I am so sorry, Harry. I wish he could have let it be, but no, he had to hurt me. It’s such a typical behaviour for a Malfoy like him. When he wants revenge, he _will_ get it. And it’s all my fault.”

            Harry was horrified. He didn’t think that Draco’s father would be so vindictive and vengeful. He started to sob and whine, shaking his head hard. His facial expression was full of desperate emotions. His jade-green eyes, Severus could tell, were consisting of things like “I'll go apologize to him”, “I’ll let him have his way with me”, “I’ll do anything you want!” and “Please don’t throw me away”, among other expressions, begging him to let him stay. Seeing that Severus was not responding to any of his expressions, he whined and hugged him tighter, not wanting to let go.

            “Shh, shh, shh…” Severus hushed him as he rubbed his back, trying to calm him down. “Your parents’ last will and testimony was found. They wanted you to be under the care of Hogwarts all along. You should have been there to begin with.”

            Harry looked up at him with tearful and confused eyes.

            “You should never have been taking to your Muggle relatives. You should have been taken to Hogwarts to be taken care of like a child, not a slave.”

            Harry looked back at him, more fresh tears pouring as his eyes seemed to say, “I don’t care about that. I don’t want to leave you.”

            “I’m sorry, Harry, but you have to,” Severus kissed his head again. “I will miss you, pet. Maybe when you are older, if you want you can come see me.”

            Harry shook his head so hard, it could threaten to fall off his neck as he hugged Severus tighter, crying his eyes out and not wanting to let go.

            “Hush, my little pet. Don’t give yourself a headache,” Severus said as he reached over to the second drawer of the side table and fished out a vial filled with whitish-blue liquid. “There, there. Drink this for me.”

            Harry looked at the vial warily for a moment. After seeing that his Master gave him a reassuring smile, he took it and drank it. Unbeknownst to him, Severus gave him a small dose of sleeping draught potion to calm him down. The last thing he wanted was to let his pet drive him to pools of tears as well. He had to be strong for him, not become a crying mess in front of him, no matter how hard his heart clenched and how badly his eyes wanted to turn themselves into mini-waterfalls.

            “There you go,” Severus kissed his cheek. “Sleep for a bit.”

            Harry soon felt the potion kicking in, his eyes starting to droop. Slowly he fell back a little into a deep sleep, automatically sucking his thumb and go in a fetal position. Severus pulled the covers up over them, holding the boy in his lap as he slept. He used magic to turn off all the lights except the night lights near his bed, watching over the boy like a guardian angel.

            This was going to be a long night, or at least he hoped it would.

\--:--

            “Good morning, Severus.”

            Albus Dumbledore, as promised, came to the Snape manor to fetch his charge. Severus greeted him back as he let him in, dark circles literally covering under his eyes from lack of sleeping. Evidently, he had stayed awake all night to watch Harry sleep, not wanting to miss a thing on Harry and savour what was left of the time to be with him. He studied every inch of him that night, from his smooth unruly hair to his soft eyelids that covered his beautiful jade-green eyes to the lashes that allowed the last of his tears cling onto them to his rosy-tinted lips that sucked on his little thumb and all the way to his luscious fair skin that gleamed under the night lights. Before he knew, the sun was up and the door of his bedroom was knocked, with the butler telling him that Albus had arrived.

            “Good Lord, Severus,” Albus exclaimed in genuine concern. “You look like you just came from a train wreck.”

            “Thanks,” Severus replied sarcastically. “Please have a seat at the tea lounge. One of my servants will get you something to drink. I will go wake Harry up and get him ready.”

            “Very well, Severus. Take your time.”

            Severus nodded and left as soon as one of the maids came in with tea and crumpets for Albus. He went back to the bedroom where Harry was still sleeping, sucking his thumb as usual.

            “Harry, my pet, wake up.”

            Harry murmured a little before falling back to sleep.

            “Harry,” Severus shook Harry lightly. “Get up.”

            Harry whined and slowly stirred.

            “Harry, you must get up, love.”

            Soon, the boy stretched himself awake before sitting up and rubbing the sleep off his eyes.

            “Do you want to take a shower?”

            Harry nodded while yawning.

            “I will get you an outfit to wear, OK? You go wash up in the bathroom,” Severus said as he kissed him lightly on the lips.

            Harry felt Severus’ lips on him and was soon fully awake. He suddenly wrapped his arms around his neck and kissed him back deeply. Severus groaned, holding him close to kiss even deeper. _Gods, I wish this wasn’t our last moments together,_ Severus thought. He would’ve made love to him there and then. Before he lost his self-control, he pulled back, tearing himself reluctantly away from the kiss.

            “Shower, love.”

            Harry looked a little dejected, but went to the bathroom obediently. As Severus watched him enter the bathroom, he sighed and took a deep breath as he left the bedroom to the dressing room. He rummaged through the wardrobe and soon found something that would suit Harry rather well as both a going-away present and a way to impress Albus. It was something he used to wear when he was Harry’s age. He didn’t want to throw it away because his late mother bought it for him for his 12th birthday and it was the only thing that reminded him the most about his mother. It was a mini-version of the suit he always wore for work with the robe to match. If Harry were to wear it and stand side by side with him, they’d look like father and son. It was the suit he wore when he came back to Hogwarts after the semester break and it was the suit that got him to actually received compliments from his fellow housemates about how cute and proper he looked in it. He wasn’t sure they meant it in a sarcastic way or a genuinely impressed way, but at least he was being noticed. Besides, it was the best way to hide his scars whenever his father was in a beating mood. He was almost glad that his father had drank himself to death, or else he wouldn’t have been able to inherit the manor and cared for his mother until she passed on due to her frail body from years of domestic abuse. Such is a life he did not want repeated on Harry, who had enough of the tough life back home.

            As he brought the outfit back into the bedroom, he felt the urge to surprise Harry. After all, if they were to spend their last moments together, he might as well make use of the situation as much as he could. Quietly, he undressed himself and went into the bathroom, looking expectantly at Harry washing himself from head to toe.

            “Hello, pet.”

            Harry looked up upon hearing the door opening and closing and Severus’ voice and blushed bright red when he saw his Master standing there smiling in all his naked glory. He didn’t need to be a genius to know that this was their last days together. He could tell from the atmosphere alone. But when he saw Severus in full frontal nudity in front of him, all his anxiety and sadness went away and was replaced with unadulterated wonting, which was quite evident in his little boyhood’s current ‘excitement’.

            “I know you will be going away, and I do not want this to be a farewell fuck. If you don’t even want an intimate touch I will leave.”

            Harry wouldn’t hear of it. There was no way he was letting him go, now that he was standing there offering himself and allowing Harry to have him. He grabbed Severus’ hand before he could leave and placed it against his chest, blushing in his tears. Severus sat down on the little ledge near the bathtub and pulled Harry close to him.

            “I love you, pet. Don’t forget it,” he said, leaning down to kiss Harry’s neck.

            “Mah…Love…” Harry sighed and tilted his head to give more access for Severus. Apparently he wanted to say ‘I love you too, Master,’ but could only go as far as that.

            “I will see to it that Albus gets you a good speech teacher. That speech teacher I originally called for you is so unreliable. Whatever agency that trained him should have him fired,” Severus said as he lowered his hands to Harry’s ass, stroking it softly.

            Harry shivered at Severus’ touch, gripping his shoulders. Severus took some baby oil he had kept in the bathroom cabinet for the purpose of keeping his hands from being calloused from handling potions and slicked his fingers with it. He made Harry lean against the bathroom sink to face the huge bathroom mirror, his little ass sticking out at him.

            “Hold yourself open for me, pet.”

            Harry obeyed, letting the top half of his body rest against the sink and held both his butt cheeks to show his enticing opening to him. Droplets of water and what was left of the soap dripped from every part of the boy’s body, landing gently and almost soundlessly onto the sink, counter and marbled floor. His black-ebony hair was jet-black when it was wet and they stuck onto his fair face, framing them in a decoratively erotic fashion. Severus’ manhood soared and pointed to the ceiling at the sight of this haven before him.

            “So beautiful,” Severus whispered as he stuck on oil-coated finger in slowly pumping it in and out. Harry let out a startled moan as he felt himself entered, trembling as Severus’ lips touched his spine, kissing it and tasting the drops of water.

            “Mah…” Harry moaned in bliss. Oh, how he wished this moment would never end.

            Severus slowly pushed another finger in. Harry winced a little at the intrusion, but soon adjusted and was moaning in pleasure.

            “I can’t wait to be inside you,” Severus said as he stuck another finger in, stretching him to get him ready for the main event. “Do you want me inside you? Fucking you so hard you forget your own name?”

            Harry nodded hard as his breathing got heavier and quicker, wanting more than just the three fingers pumping and stretching him, “F-Fuck!”

            Severus pulled his fingers out and slicked himself up. “Come here,” he said as he pulled Harry towards him, his back against Severus’ chest but still facing the big mirror that had both of them in clear view. He held his cock up for Harry to enter him, breathing, “Slowly, Harry. I want to remember every moment.”

            Harry nodded and lowered himself slowly onto Severus’ cock, taking in every inch until he engulfed him to the hilt, letting out small mewls of ecstasy.

            “Perfect,” Severus let out a sigh of content and kissed the boy’s neck. “Ride me, pet.”

            Harry started thrusting his hips in a steady pace, bringing himself deeper and deeper until he could feel Severus hitting the bundle of nerves that made him see white hot flashes in his mind’s eyes.

            “Harder, Harry,” Severus whispered, his other hand reaching up to pinch Harry’s nipple.

            Harry started to move a little faster, ramming his weight down onto Severus’ cock as he assaulted the prostate in himself over and over again. From the mirror’s standpoint, he could see himself moving in such an erotic fashion, almost like dancing as he bobbed his entire body up and down Severus’ length and Severus’ hand stroking his cock gently, making him leak with pre-cum. Seeing himself in such a different point of view made his cock throbbed and burned even more, and he could feel Severus’ manhood expand a little as well in him, indicating that he must be turned on just as much.

            Feeling himself getting close but wanting this moment to last a little longer, he pulled Harry up and off his cock. He spun them around and sat Harry on the bathroom counter next to the sink. Being face to face, he could see the reflection of Harry’s back against the mirror and when he looked up, he could see his own too, panting breathlessly as his usually sallow skin was tinted with pinkish-red, totally flushed with lust and ecstasy over this beautiful angel who had captivated his heart since the first day he saw him. Leaning down, he entered Harry again, moving fast, finding the sweet spot almost immediately. Harry bit his finger to muffle his screams of pleasure as he felt Severus assaulted his sweet spot again and again.

            “No,” Severus said, pulling Harry’s hand away. “Scream for me, vocalize your pleasure.”

            “Mah~! Mah~! MAH~!!!” Harry let out scream after scream of pure bliss, feeling his Master making him succumb into this blissful torture.

            “So good…So good…!” Severus groaned as he stroked Harry’s cock, feeling himself getting closer and wanting to make Harry come with him. “Come for me, pet.”

            Harry lost control as soon as he felt Severus stroke him. He let out a loud moan as he came all over himself and on Severus’ hand like he had never come before. Severus followed suite, slowly down as he let his body pour his seed inside Harry. After moments of letting every seed out of his system, he panted before leaning down to hug Harry as he started to sob, unable to stop. He knew that it was over. Their last moments together were all over after this. They would no longer be together like they used to. No longer will they wake up in each other’s arms and no longer will they sit together to enjoy each other’s company as they go about their daily lives. No longer will he be able to hold his little one in his arms, enjoying his blissful warmth, hearing his cheerful smile, read his expressive face and feel his smooth touches. This was hell. A hell he wished would never descend on him.

            “Mah…?” Harry voiced out, surprised to see this side of Severus.

            “Don’t forget me, Harry. Promise me, alright?” Severus kissed him, then pulled out of him. He took the showerhead and rinsed his length and the rest of his body briefly before continuing, “Clean up now. I’ll be waiting for you in the bedroom.”

            Severus quickly walked out of the bathroom, his tears still flowing out but not wanting to show it to his little pet. Harry, despite his tremors still not subsiding, came down the counter and hugged Severus’ waist from behind. He knew he was crying, but he wanted to know why he was hiding it from him.

            “Harry, please. Albus has been waiting too long. It’s not polite. Now clean up, please,” Severus insisted as he left. He didn’t want to seem heartless; he wanted to wait until Harry left before he cried his heart out. For now, he had to be strong in front of him.

            Harry rewashed himself, cleaning himself off the cum that leaked out of him and quickly wrapped himself up with a towel, not really drying himself. When he came out of the bathroom quietly, he peeked to see Severus sitting on the bed desperately trying to hold back his sobbing, pressing his hands on his mouth to suppress his choked voice. The way he clenched his eyes tight as he tried to stop the tears from flowing was more than Harry could take. He tottered out of the bathroom and climbed onto the bed to hug his head close to him, patting it to try and comfort his crying.

            “Harry, love…” Severus choked, wiping his teary eyes.

            Harry came down the bed and knelt between Severus’ legs in front of him, looking at him with sad eyes, as if saying “Don’t cry, Master”.

            “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to,” Severus replied as he tried to put a smile on. He loosened the towel wrapped around Harry and started wiping him dry. Harry smiled, allowing himself to be wiped dry by his Master. He, too, wanted to prolong their time together.

\--:--

            Meanwhile, Albus stole a look at the time. It was about a quarter to ten. He had been waiting patiently while reading the Daily Prophet and getting a free light breakfast in the process, as if knowing that Severus’ farewell with Harry would take him a while. But he needed to report back to the Ministry about him taking Harry as his charge by noon, and if he did not hurry, Cornelius would definitely suspect something and might end up sending Aurors in if he thought the situation was dire, and that would definitely not be a pretty sight. He had to get going before that happened.

            He finished the last of his tea and went to Severus’ room and knocked the door, “Is everything alright in there, Severus?”

            “Yes, everything’s fine. We…I mean, I couldn’t find something that Harry liked to wear,” Severus lied, then helped him button up the suit. “Come, Harry, dress quick.”

            Harry nodded and put on his pants while Severus helped him finish the last button.

            “Is it alright if I come in? I want to have the first look on my charge.”

            “Yes, of course, come in. I’ve unlocked the door,” Severus said as he went behind a changing veil board to change, casting a drying charm on his hair. He had Harry stand near the bed in the bedroom while Albus entered the room.

            “Hello, child. You must be Harry Potter. My name is Albus Dumbledore and I’m going to be your new charge from today onwards,” Albus smiled kindly at him.

            Harry cowered away a little from Albus despite his kind grandfatherly looks. He was not taking any chances and letting his guard down. The last time he was introduced and entrusted to a new master while his current master had to go away for a week on a business trip, that new master was like a wolf on sheep’s clothing as he smiled like an angel in front of his current master and turn 360 degrees almost immediately into a devil when he was gone.

            Severus soon came out decently dressed. As he laid a hand on Harry’s shoulder, assuring him that Albus would not hurt him, he asked the old man quietly, “Albus, is there a way I can see him? Maybe like a visitation once a week kind of thing?”

            “Well you are our Potions Master in school, so I suppose you can see him once in a while if you are lucky,” Albus noted. “But even so, it is strictly "See but not Touch", I’m afraid. Cornelius is very particular about your punishment. If it were up to him, I don’t think you would be able to see him at all. I will try to let you kids meet whenever I can, but remember, I can only do so much.”

            “Thank you, Albus,” Severus bowed his head a little, then turned to Harry and said, “You be good, pet.”

            Harry clung onto Severus’ hand, still a little afraid to go near Albus.

            “It’s alright, Harry. I’ll take good care of you,” Albus assured him.

            “I promise he will,” Severus confirmed his assurance, smiling as convincingly as he could. “Just go, Harry.”

            Harry cowered behind Severus, still reluctant to separate from him.

            “Harry, get out of here!” Severus exclaimed in an almost begging tone as he tried to pry the boy away. Any longer and he would be sobbing like a baby, and that was the last thing he’d want to be in front of his beloved.

            Albus could see that if he didn’t do something, the separation would be harder and something unthinkable might happen. Brandishing his wand, he used it to levitate Harry into the air and brought him into his arms before the situation got worse. Harry ended up kicking and screaming in Albus’ arms, crying his lungs out and holding his hands out desperately for Severus to take him back. Severus turned around, clenching his hands so hard that his knuckles went white.

            “I’ll be taking my leave now, Severus. You take care.”

            Severus nodded quietly and walked Albus and Harry out of the manor. Harry’s cries and screams alerted the servants and they all came out to see what was wrong. Neville and Colin, seeing that their dear little friend was taken away by the Headmaster of Hogwarts and their master not doing anything but averted his eye contact with their friend as he and the old Headmaster made their way to the front yard, wanted to go forth and stop them but was held back by the head housekeeper.

            “We have no business in this,” the head housekeeper said within their earshot. “If Master Snape is not doing anything to stop this, then we have no obligation to do so. It is high time that little wretched brat left anyway.”

            Albus quickly got into the carriage and whispered a sleeping spell into Harry’s ear before the little boy could struggle and escape from his grasp. The spell took effect rather quickly and soon he was being rocked to sleep in the old man’s arms as the older man hummed an age-old lullaby that had been forgotten through time. He tapped on the ceiling of the carriage to signal the driver to leave, almost hoping that he hadn’t done this and wishing that it had not come to this. Severus watched until the carriage totally went out of sight before stomping into his bedroom and slammed the door, locking it.

            He didn’t come out the rest of the day.


	16. Chapter 16

            “Finally. Pretty good work, Crabbe. Let’s see who has the last laugh now.”

            Lucius chuckled to himself as he took out a piece of parchment to reply the letter that he had just received via owl from his lackey Crabbe the senior. Apparently his connections and power in the Ministry didn’t come without its benefits when it comes to asking for favours. Needless to say, he had to pull a few strings to get what he wanted but at least he had his revenge, and that’s what mattered to him the most.

            Ever since that fateful day when he was being bitten by Harry, he was hell bent on getting back at Severus. Family or not, no one gets the better of a Malfoy, and when a Malfoy wants revenge, he/she _will_ get it one way or another. It was a sort of family religion that even Draco himself practiced occasionally when he exerted his teenage power over his schoolmates. The day after the incident, Lucius rounded up some of his lackeys, Crabbe and Goyle the seniors included, to dig up any dirt they could find on Harry that the slave trader had missed out. They even went down to the home where the late James Potter and Lily Evans used to live and where they were assassinated, and he even dug up some old files regarding the arrest of Tom Marvolo Riddle and his recapture to find out about his hideouts. They couldn’t find anything valuable for Lucius’ purposes, but they did find out that Riddle had a habit of collecting trophies like personal belongings of the people he killed. After searching the most recent hideout of Riddle before he was finally recaptured, Lucius managed to find the last will and testimony hidden in an old box among other things like picture frames, James’ old Snitch which was no longer functional and their many certificates and medals of honour for their contribution to society. After going through proper channels to make sure the will was legit, it was a matter of time before he went up to Minister Cornelius Fudge and Albus Dumbledore to speak about Harry’s misbehaviour and produce the will to enforce the punishment. Lucius relied on Cornelius’ secret loyalty to him to agree to any form of punishment Lucius would suggest, and the rest of it was, sadly, history.

            “Maybe I should reward a little bit more handsomely to Crabbe and Goyle for a job well done, don’t you think so, Nightwing?” Lucius said as he wrote, occasionally engaging small talk with his owl Nightwing who was perched on her usual spot eating a piece of raw rat meat he had ready for her. The owl was the least bit interested in all the human talk, but she was a good listener all the same.

            “Father?”

            Lucius looked up to see his son standing there looking confused. Apparently, Draco was on his way out to attend extra Charms classes when he stumbled upon Lucius talking to Nightwing with his office door half-opened. Lucius made a mental note to always keep his door closed when he rambles to himself.

            “Yes, my boy?”

            “You were saying something, Father. I don’t mean to interrupt you though,” Draco replied. Lucius looked a little longingly at his son. He wasn’t really into the thought of incest, but if he were not his blood and were not the split image of his younger self, he would’ve ravished him there and then. From a little toddler he used to hold in his arms, Draco had grown into a rather beautiful young man, more so ever since he had witnessed him being made a real man by his ex-slave Remus. He felt it rather a waste for such a beautiful boy as him to be associated with a sex slave who could be old enough to be the boy’s father. Lucius cleared his throat before more dirty thought ran any further through his mind.

            “It’s alright, boy. I was just receiving the news from your friend Crabbe’s father that Albus has already taken Harry off your godfather’s hands.”

            “Why, Father?”

            “Because, dear boy, we’ve found the slave boy’s late parents’ will, and it states that he was supposed to be sent to Hogwarts to look after at the time of their death,” Lucius replied as he briefly told him about what happened in the meeting. “He was only fulfilling his parents’ wish. After all, it is the law under the Legal Affairs. Though I personally believe this should give your godfather a wake-up call.”

            “But don’t you think that’s a little mean, Father?”

            “Well, that’ll teach him to disregard the customs of slavery and not disciplining his slave. I warned him he’ll be sorry for spoiling the boy. I warned him the boy would bring him nothing but misery. Look what mess the boy got him into.”

            Draco sighed inwardly. He knew it was no point arguing with his father when he was in a grudging mood. It seemed he had not gotten over the fact that Harry had taken a chunk off him.

            “Yes, Father. I understand. I must be going. I have extra Charms class. I’ll just go get my books from my room and be off,” Draco replied, bowing at him in respect and went to his room, leaving his father to grin and smoke his pipe with a smug look on his face as he finished the last sentences on his letter and sent Nightwing on her way to Crabbe’s home.

            Remus was folding the clean clothes and putting them in the wardrobe when Draco entered the room. He immediately flashed him a happy smile.

            “Hey there, Drake.”

            “Father made Uncle Sev lose Harry,” Draco got straight to the point as soon as he closed and locked the door.

            “Wh…What? H-How?” Remus asked in shock.

            “Father claims that he had found Harry’s parents’ will and asked the Ministry to make Uncle Sev give Harry over to them, but I can bet my money on Father getting back at Uncle Sev for not punishing Harry for biting him. Gods, my father is such an ass sometimes.”

            “Then…Then where is Harry now?”

            “At Hogwarts,” Draco shrugged.

            “Isn’t that where you’re schooling?” Remus asked worriedly. “Who’s his new Master now?”

            “My headmaster Albus Dumbledore. He’s a nice, almost grandfatherly, man, but he can be a pain in my ass sometimes,” Draco replied with a sulky look on his face.

            “Oh?” Remus chuckled at his facial expression. “How so?”

            “He’s annoying, that’s all to it.”

            “Really?” Remus asked, hugging Draco from behind. “Do tell. How annoying can he be?”

            “I try to get others in trouble sometimes, mostly the Gryffindors, but he just smiles and never does anything. He’s such a biased fool.”

            “You call that annoying? I call that being nice, or maybe because he knows you’re the mastermind behind all this, but because you’re Master’s son, he knows he can’t do anything without getting himself fired, so it is best if he didn’t do anything.”

            “Fine, take his side,” Draco pouted, not wanting to look at him in his current dejected mood. “You don’t even defend your Master.”

            “Aww, c’mon, Drake. I’m just stating a bit of the facts. You’ll always be my little Young Master,” Remus tried to comfort him, hugging him close to his chest.

            “What about in a few years?”

            “Drake, even if your hair turns whiter than paper, you will still be my little Young Master, and I love you for that.”

            “What if I topped? Would I still be your Young Master?”

            “Oh? Are you sure you wanna top? You’ve always loved me ramming up on you.”

            “Well, maybe, but that’s not the point,” Draco blushed.

            “Hmm…?” Remus raised an eyebrow, giving him a naughty skeptical look, then tackle-glomped him onto the carpeted floor. “Maybe, you say? You wanna rephrase that?”

            “Remus Lupin,” Draco sighed and rolled his eyes in defeat. “You dirty old man.”

            “I…I’m sorry,” Remus stuttered, realizing what he had just done and tried to get up. “Was I being too pushy?”

            “That was not what I mean, now back on me." Draco growled, pulling him back down by the collar. “I like pushy sometimes.”

            “You think…” Remus smiled expectantly. “You’re ready now…for me?”

            “I believe so, Remy. It’s been a long while.”

            “You have extra Charms classes today, you know.”

            “So what?” Draco grinned naughtily. “I am your Master. You must do what I say.”

            “Yes, my Young Master. Your wish is my command.”

            With that he started kissing him nice and slow, feeling him up and down his body. Draco moaned softly into the kiss, his own hands exploring Remus’ body as they sneaked under his jersey shirt and roamed all over the perfectly-shaped abs and torso. Remus removed his school uniform one by one, teasing his body as he went while he continued kissing, making the boy arch up into each touch and tease. He traced his hands on Remus down to his ass and grabbed it, pulling him closer.

            “Mmm…Anxious, aren’t we?” Remus asked as he removed the last of Draco’s clothing, baring him all for the world to see.

            “Of course, you’re driving me crazy with your teasing,” Draco grinned, licking his lips seductively. “Remy…is it wrong to want it rough on our second time?”

            “Well, no, but…I don’t want to hurt you…”

            “I don’t want that either. But I want it hard and fast.”

            “Why the sudden gesture?” Remus was surprised.

            “I don’t know why. I just do,” Draco shrugged, then remembered something. “Or maybe it’s because I caught those two Gryffindors Seamus and Dean roughly shagging each other senseless yesterday at the forbidden toilet where Moaning Myrtle is without even the decency to cast a Silencing Charm. Moaning Myrtle seemed to be enjoying the show though. She hushed me and we both ended up watching it till the end.”

            “My naughty Young Master being a Peeping Tom, eh? Alright, you got it, my little Young Master/”

            So saying, he started tearing off his own clothes and hungrily took one of Draco’s nipples in his mouth, sucking it hard, making the boy moan with pleasure.

            “Yes, gods…Trap my arms above my head, please.”

            Remus did so, taking both Draco’s wrists with one hand then put his fingers of the other hand into Draco’s mouth, saying, “Suck me, you dirty little thing.”

            Draco grinned and opened his mouth, taking in the fingers and sucking them erotically. While he did that, Remus leaned over and bit onto Draco’s nipple, giving it a little tug, making the boy let out a muffled moan as he bucked up. The older man could feel the vibration of Draco’s voice on his fingers as he moaned with pleasure while he gave the same treatment on the other nipple, sucking, biting and tugging at it lightly.

            When he felt that his fingers were lubricated enough, he took them out and put in two at once, just like how rough sex always start off. Draco bit his lip at the first pain, but he knew he would get use to it. Remus knew that he shouldn’t be hurting his Young Master, but he was asked to do it rough, and had to respect Draco’s wishes. He began pumping in and out, scissoring him to stretch him out nice and as he brushed against the prostate where he knew through experience and in a way he knew would drive Draco nuts.

            “Yes,” Draco hissed, trying to push down on those fingers. “More…More…Deeper…”

            “Oh yeah, you like that, don’t you? You’re a dirty little whore, aren’t you?” Remus asked as he added the third finger and thrust in him faster and deeper, often barely pressing against the prostate just to drive him crazy.

            “Yes, I’m a filthy whore, Oh God, fuck me, damn it!”

            Seeing that Draco was starting to beg for it, he grinned naughtily and pulled out his fingers, earning a whine of protest from Draco. He carried him by the armpits like you would to a toddler with his superhuman strength, then dropped him onto the bed, making him bounce on it lightly as he landed on it.

            “I am going to fuck you so hard you won’t be able to sit for a week, baby.”

            “Well I was hoping you would take on the fl—”

            The rest of Draco’s sentence died on his tongue as Remus attacked his nipples again, sucking and biting him off with such vigor. While he did that, Remus quickly entered him with one thrust all the way to the hilt. Draco bit his lip as he felt himself being entered so roughly, knowing that he could never back out of this now that they were already into it.

            “Wait, wait just a moment.”

            “I…I’m sorry,” Remus said in a worried tone. “Did I do something wrong?”

            “It…hurts a little,” Draco admitted. “Just wait a moment. Then you can fuck me into the bed.”

            “Alright. I’ll wait till you’ve adjusted,” Remus replied as he kissed Draco’s forehead.

            “So much for rough sex,” Draco sighed, feeling rather embarrassed to be in this situation.

            “It’s OK. It’s just your second time,” Remus stroked his hair, grinning. “Once you’re used to it, you’re gonna enjoy it, well, something like that, in a way. You alright now? Coz looking at you alone is gonna make me come.”

            “Sure. I think I’m alright now. Keep my hands above my head.”

            Remus nodded and pinned Draco’s hand above his head, then started moving and adjusting until he found the prostate that made Draco howl and see stars.

            “I am going to pound you into the bed now, dirty thing.”

            “Oh fucking hell! Gods, harder, I want to feel it!”

            “Oh, yeah, you love it, don’t you, you little slut?” Remus growled as he raised Draco’s hips until his feet rested on his shoulders before pinning his hands down again and assaulted the prostate ferociously.

            “Dear gods,” Draco bit his lip as his eyes clenched and unclenched, the white hot stars flicker in and out of his mind’s eyes. But it wasn’t enough. He wanted more. More of this blissful torture. He looked up with a challenging look at Remus and said, “You call that hard, you bastard?”

            “You want it hard, you bitch?” Remus roared, getting into the rough sex roleplay. “I’ll give you hard.”

            So saying, he picked Draco up and turned him around till his back faced his chest, then held onto his thighs and pushed him up and down his cock vigorously, hitting Draco’s prostate over and over again.

            “Yes! Yes! Oh…!” Draco panted, arching his back at the pleasurable assault. “Harder, harder! Make me go insane!”

            After a few moments of slamming Draco’s hips down his cock, he forced Draco on all fours and rammed him hard, fast and deep like a freight train, literally slamming himself into his Young Master, the sound of skin slapping against skin echoing throughout the room. It was more than Draco could hold as his stomach tightened in and out into crazy, impossible knots, begging for release.

            “I’m gonna…I’m gonna…FUCK!” Draco fell on his face as he came on his sheets. It felt like his brain had melted out of his cock. Draco’s tightening ring of muscles around his throbbing manhood as the boy came made him lose control. A few thrusts later, he came long and hard as well, letting out an almost beast-like groan as he emptied himself inside him. Draco finally slumped and laid on his stomach all over his own cum, too tired to move.

            “God, that felt good…” Draco groaned in delight.

            “You were wonderful, Drake…” Remus pulled out as soon as his manhood had softened and lay down beside him, panting in his smile as he had his arms around Draco.

            “Thanks,” Draco smiled back. “I feel like a soft piece of noodle right now.”

            “Sorry I made you miss your extra Charms class,” Remus kissed Draco behind the ears.

            “I don’t care. Charms can just go to hell. I like being here with you. But if Father asks, you will tell him I went, right?”

            “Don’t worry, I’ll vouch for you. I’ll tell him you went for classes. Besides,” Remus tapped his temple lightly, “Hypnotism, remember? I can always make either your teacher vouch for you or make your father believe me so much he doesn’t need to investigate it.”

            “Why haven’t you used it to get out of here?”

            “Because…well, my hypnotism comes with a price.”

            “Which is…?”

            “I can’t use hypnotism any time I want. Only in dire or special circumstances. If I use it too much as I please, I will…turn.”

            “Turn? Around?” Draco scratched his head, a little confused.

            “No, silly,” Remus chuckled and pinched Draco’s cheek playfully. “Turn. As in turn into a werewolf.”

            “Oh…permanently?”

            “Well, not exactly,” Remus replied as he held Draco close. “You see, every time I use my special powers in human form, some of my werewolf nature would invade me. Using it excessively would accelerate the process and it'll make me turn into a werewolf even in broad daylight, and I won’t be sane when that happens. I might end up killing people, even you. I don’t want that to happen, no matter how much I crave the freedom. I made that mistake once when I was 15, I don’t wanna do that again. Besides,” he leaned his forehead against Draco’s, “all I ever want is just right here.”

            Draco smiled and nodded, “I promise you, one day you will be free.”

            “And I promise you one day you will be free as well, from this dreary pretense life.”

            “Remy,” Draco hesitated for a moment before continuing, “can I ask you something? This does not go anywhere by here.”

            “Yes, Drake. Anything.”

            “Do you think Father likes me? You know, in _that_ way?”

            Remus hesitated a minute before asking, “Why do you ask?”

            “I don’t know,” Draco shrugged. “Sometimes I catch him staring at me, like…you know, how he looks at a virgin sex slave. Even just now, when he told me about Uncle Sev and Harry, he was looking at me like…”

            “Drake,” Remus grabbed Draco suddenly by the shoulders, his eyes changing into the golden colour he was very familiar with. “If he ever, _ever_ touches you like that, I will kill him. Father or not, I _will_ kill him!”

            “I…I’m sorry…I…I didn’t think it was anything. It could just be my imagination…” Draco looked away. As much as he loved him, he was still fearful of Remus’ temper. He rarely got angry, but when he did, it wasn’t pretty. The last time he saw him angry was when the Head Cook threw hot water at him during his first year in the Malfoy mansion just because he didn’t like how Remus looked at him, and the Head Cook soon found himself at the mercy of Remus brandishing two kitchen knives at his jugular and him growling like a hungry wolf, his eyes golden as the sun. It was also where his father discovered Remus being a half-werewolf and of course, his father quickly learnt how to subdue him: with a silver rod.

            Remus noticed that he was scaring Draco and quickly calmed down and reverted back to his human eyes. He took Draco close to his chest and said, “If he does anything to you, you tell me, alright? You come straight to me and tell me and I swear I’ll…”

            He couldn’t continue. Anger and jealousy began swimming in his heart as he struggled to deny to himself that anything of that sort could happen. It couldn’t. It shouldn’t! He would never let it happen. If it actually happened and he was not there to stop it, he didn’t know what he’d do.

            “I promise, Remy,” Draco said as he leaned his forehead against Remus’. “I promise you I will.”

            “I love you, Drake,” Remus took Draco’s chin and kissed his forehead.

            “I love you too,” Draco smiled back.

            It was the most genuine and blissful smile he had ever had in years.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many were wondering throughout this whole story why is it that everyone seemed to come and go in Hogwarts and the Ministry so easily, especially Severus and Draco. Well, technically, since this is AU, we sort of decided that certain people, like them, for example, live rather close to Hogwarts and rather spend their money on Floo powder or personal carriages than actually spend it on staying in the school hostel. Only those who live far away from Hogwarts or come from halfway across the world (or maybe in a farm) have to stay in the school. So there. That should clear things up.

            Harry looked around Albus’ office curiously. It was the first time he had been to the school where his Master worked, and now that he was with Albus his new Master (he had wished to be in Severus’ office instead of here), he could’ve sworn he had never seen so many books in his life.

            Getting acquainted with Albus alone was a tough one. Despite the fact that Albus was trying hard to be nice to him, he couldn’t help but being wary about him. Experience taught him that nothing is what it seems, and he had a bit of a hard time trusting the old man. It just didn’t feel right to be with other people knowing that he would not have Severus to return to. He kept a considerable distance from Albus as soon as he woke up from the effects of the sleeping spell, refusing to answer any of Albus’ questions and didn’t want to have any eye contact with him all the way to the school. Even when the old man offered him a sherbet lemon, he didn’t want to take it. He was not letting his guard down and not taking any chances.

            Once they reached the school, Harry was bombarded with a lot of new things around him. For starters, he had never seen a castle before, especially when his impression of Severus’ work building was definitely not the size of a ancient medieval building. Secondly, he had never seen so many kids around his age, and others slightly older than him, walking around chit-chatting with each other as if it was the normal thing to do. Occasionally they would cast their gaze at him, but they more or less left him alone while he was walking side by side with Albus. Instinctively he reached for a hand to grab for security, and he hadn’t realized that he had been holding Albus’ hand until he had reached Albus’ office after walking past other teachers, the mean old caretaker Mr. Filch and his pet cat Mrs. Norris, a couple of ghosts (which scared the hell out of him) including Nearly Headless Nick and Bloody Baron, and the poltergeist Peeves (who tickled his ribs as it passed him).

            “I’m glad you’re acquainted here,” Albus smiled at him. “Now, your room is through here,” he pointed towards the far end of the left where there was a small dark-green door right between two smaller shelves of books that were marked ‘Magic Sociology’ and ‘Ancient Magical Laws’, “I will tell you what else chores you need to do as we go, but in the meantime, you are to keep this office and our rooms—I’ll show you where’s mine later—and help out whenever I need you to, alright?”

            Harry nodded obediently. Then he saw a huge reddish-yellowish orange bird that was perched just right beside Albus’ work desk. He wanted to reach over and pet it but was afraid that the bird would peck his eyes out or something. Fortunately it eyed him with interest as well before leaning down its head to allow him to pet it.

            “This is Fawkes, my phoenix,” Albus said. “Looks like he has taken an interest to you. Go on, you can pet him. He’s very friendly.”

            Harry smiled and reached up to pet Fawkes. Fawkes leaned in to touch beak with his nose, making him giggle.

            “Well, I must go and talk to a few students. Be good while I am away, alright, child?”

            Harry nodded and continued to play with Fawkes. Albus, after making sure that Harry was alright alone, walked off his office to find the speech teacher and reading and writing teacher for Harry.

            And he knew just the right person to look for.

\--:--

            Ronald Bilius Weasley and Hermione Jean Granger are in the school library doing their assignments. It was almost the mid-term and they were swamped with mid-term assignments that probably piled up all the way above their eyebrows, and Hogwarts’ most renowned couple were there wrecking their brains out trying to answer all the tough questions given mercilessly by their professors. Well, at least one of them was actually wrecking his brains out. The other was all smooth sailing as she finished her second last piece of homework for the day.

            This couple was no stranger in Hogwarts. They were known as the ‘Old Married Couple’ of Hogwarts because they behaved like one, even though they were only engaged to each other. Technically they were childhood friends due to the fact that their parents were very close business liaisons. Mr. and Mrs. Granger were professional Muggle dentists and they work part-time as an information provider for Mr. Weasley’s job as a member in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office. According to some of Ron’s many extended relatives recollecting their nostalgia during a family gathering to celebrate Ron and Hermione being sorted to the Gryffindors, the meeting between the Grangers and the Weasleys was pure coincidence when Arthur Weasley—Ron’s father—was on a mission along with a few Aurors to arrest a fellow wizard who stole an M-16 from the artifact office to try it out on Muggle civilians and just so happened to pick the Grangers’ clinic as a target practice. They managed to arrest the wizard before he hurt more people and spared the Grangers from turning Hermione into an orphan.

            The next time they met, Dillian and Veronica Granger—Hermione’s parents—were at the park reminiscence the incident that happened at their clinic when they saw their little girl squabbling with a little redhead boy named Ron about the lollipop she was eating and soon came across Arthur and Molly Weasley, and the rest of their friendship was history. Arthur taught Dillian and Veronica how to spot and differentiate between wizards and Muggles and they helped him to provide him with information about Muggle items and any wizard or witches who may be misusing Muggle items to do the world harm, and their children Ron and Hermione were as close as peas and carrots. It was Ron who discovered that Hermione was a Muggle-born when she levitated a chair quite by accident when they were 9 and helped her through adapting life as a witch. Seeing that they were inseparable, the Granger family and the Weasley family decided that they should get engaged on their 12th birthday. The kids were both rather apprehensive about this and obliged to this proposition out of respect for their parents at first, but as they continued on life as an engaged couple in Hogwarts, they slowly developed romantic feelings for each other, and when Ron defended Hermione when Draco called her a Mudblood and rescued her when Viktor Krum—Durmstrang’s representative during the Triwizard Tournament (in which Hogwarts won, by the way, thanks to Cedric Diggory) during their 4th year—tried to sneak his way into Hermione’s pants, Hermione knew that he was the only man she was willing to spend the rest of her life with.

            “Mione,” Ron voiced out, scratching his head trying to figure a way out of the Divination subject. “How do you describe a catastrophe that happens when Venus and Saturn aligns?”

            Hermione shrugged, “I never took that subject. It is not very logical. Just come up with something. She is always predicting your death anyway. Why do you even take that awful subject?”

            “Because I think it’s fun to try and predict the future. I was hoping that I would be able to predict,” Ron lowered his voice for this, “how many kids we’re gonna have.”

            “Very funny, Ron,” Hermione blushed as she threw the cap of the ink bottle at him, barely hitting his chest. “One thing’s for sure, I will not consider having kids until I make it into becoming a Minister in the Ministry.”

            “High ambitions, don’t you? Alright, then I’ll write ‘Prof. Snape will have an accident in the lab, causing him to sprout out hideous boils and die drowning in his pus’. How’s that?”

            “Ron!” Hermione scolded, but could hardly stop laughing at Ron’s so-called prediction. Madame Pince had to hush her to keep her in line.

            “Hey, that’ll teach him to take off my points just because I forgot to sprinkle the garlic dust into my potions last week.”

            “Yes, but you did turn your eyebrows multi-colour for an hour after that explosion, and sent almost half the class home with every hair on their bodies, including you-know-where, into rainbows that lasted for a week.”

            “Well, yeah…but that’s not the point,” Ron grumbled, scribbling down his ‘prediction’ anyway. “Point is he’s being a git, and I’m getting back at him.”

            “Sure, Ron, whatever you say,” Hermione rolled her eyes in defeat.

            “Good afternoon. Studying hard, kids?”

            Hermione and Ron looked up to see Albus Dumbledore, their Headmaster, looking over their shoulder with his usual grandfatherly smile. They smiled back at him.

            “Hello, Headmaster Dumbledore.” Hermione made way for him to sit down, in which Albus politely declined.

            “Hi there, sir. What brings you here?” Ron asked.

            “Well, I’d like you to meet someone,” Albus replied. “Why don’t you kids come with me to my office?”

            “Sure,” Hermione replied as he put her books in her bag.

            “Aye aye, cap’n,” Ron followed suite and quickly followed behind Albus. Any excuse is a pretty good excuse to skip homework. Hermione also followed behind him.

            Meanwhile, Harry stared at all the books in the shelves in the office, with Fawkes perched nicely on his shoulder. He and the phoenix had gotten acquainted quite well and seemed as if they were old friends. Fawkes had even sort of introduced Harry to the Sorting Hat by bringing it down for him to play with. Of course, the old bag of cloth and fabric didn’t like being manhandled without a reason and Harry was horrified to see a hat that can talk, but overall, Harry adjusted rather quickly and even tried the hat on. The Sorting Hat was surprised that Harry didn’t have the academic qualifications in his mind to be sorted and was rather overwhelmed by the complex mentality and child-like personality he had due to his traumatic past, but it deduced by whatever he could muster from Harry’s head that he would probably suited to be Slytherin.

            “Harry, I have brought you some visitors.”

            Harry turned to see Albus leading two teens who were about Draco’s age into the office. He quickly cowered back a little at the sight of them, his heart thumping wildly as he wondered whether he was going to be switched masters again.

            “Jumpy little fella, ain’t he?” Ron commented.

            “He looks kinda cute,” Hermione smiled.

            “Don’t be scared, Harry. Come here,” Albus gestured him to come closer. “These are friends.”

            Harry gave him a ‘Not new Masters?’ look.

            “Just friends, Harry, don’t worry. This is Ms. Hermione Granger and Mr. Ronald Weasley.”

            “Hi, kid,” Ron greeted good-naturedly while Hermione waved and gave him a reassuring look.

            Harry slowly came closer to the trio. As Ron and Hermione held out their hands to shake, Harry couldn’t help studying them from head to toe. His impression on Ron was a rather geeky-looking kid who had the reddest hair he had ever seen and probably was attacked by a freckles epidemic. The redhead looked almost unsure about himself, but at the same time, he was very friendly and seemed to be quite approachable enough. His impression on Hermione, on the other hand, was a beautiful, smart-looking young lady who would probably win some sort of beauty pageant contest, only that her intelligent looks were much more dominant and totally beat the theory of ‘brawn without brains’. He began to like them already, but to Hermione a little bit more.

            “Children, this is Harry Potter,” Albus introduced Harry to the couple. “From now on, he will be my personal slave and will be doing the menial work around Hogwarts alongside with the hired help. Ms. Granger, I was hoping you could be Harry’s speech coach while he is here. Sadly, due to his unfortunate upbringing when he was still with his Muggle relatives, he had a speech impediment. He can only say a select few words, so it’s going to be a little hard trying to communicate with him unless he at least knows the basic of normal conversation.”

            “Well, sure, I guess,” Hermione replied. “I have most of my assignments done anyway. I think I can spare the time to teach him.”

            “What can you say, Harry?” Ron tried to test the boy out.

            “Mah!” Harry smiled widely.

            “That, I believe, would mean ‘Master’,” Albus noted.

            “Anything else?” Ron asked.

            Harry thought for a while, then grinned and said, “Fuck!”

            “Well, that is not a good word to say in public, Harry,” Hermione blushed in the midst of an awkward-looking fiancé and an amused old Headmaster.

            Harry giggled and said another word he had perfected from his Master’s teaching, “Love.”

            “Well, that’s a nice word to learn,” Ron grinned. “At least he got this word right.”

            “Much better than the other one,” Hermione noted. “Any other words?”

            Harry thought again for a moment before saying, “Bai-bai.”

            “Bloody hell, he’s a tough one!” Ron groaned.

            “Well, basically he has as much speech as a baby starting to talk,” Hermione came to a conclusion to Harry’s condition. “We will have to start with the basics.”

            “Oh boy,” Ron rolled his eyes. “Does he even know how to read and write?”

            “No, he does not, I’m afraid,” Albus replied. “Like I said, he had a rather…unfortunate upbringing.”

            “Bloody hell! We’re really going to have to start from the basics beyond the basics.”

            “Picture cards,” Hermione suddenly suggested after being silent for a moment.

            “Picture cards?” Ron asked, curious.

            “When I was a kid, I learned from cards that had a picture on it. First Mother would show me a picture card, then she would say the word and made me repeat after her. Soon I began matching the word with the picture and learnt the word by seeing the real thing.”

            “So we’re gonna use the Muggle way to teach him, Mione?”

            “Well, I don’t know how wizards learn, Ron. Want to put your input in?” Hermione gave him a sideways glance, her arms folded across her chest. Harry looked from back to forth, listening in to their conversation (bickering was more like it).

            “Aw, c’mon, Mione. I was just saying. I meant no offense. It should work, I guess. We just learn what our mothers teach us, reading the ABCs. It’s standard procedure.”

            “Oh yeah? What was your first word then?”

            “I can’t remember that far back!” Ron said, flailing his arms in the air in exasperation.

            “OK, never mind. Wrong thing to ask. You have the memory span of a goldfish anyway.”

            Ron glared at her with an angry pout at that retort. Hermione flashed him a “You’re too old to pout, Ron” bored look, in which Ron shot a “Yeah, whatever” look back at her. Harry giggled at their wordless bickering. He found it amusing that they could communicate with each other with just the look on their faces. It kinda reminded him of how he communicated with Severus.

            “Alright now, children. Settle down,” Albus tried to break the bickering couple up, understanding now the full extent of why they earned the title ‘Old Married Couple’ by their fellow peers. “So, Ms. Granger, I assume that you accept the role of Harry's speech teacher?”

            “Yes, sir,” Hermione nodded. “It sounds like it would be nice.”

            “Then, Mr. Weasley, I would like you to be Harry's reading and writing teacher, along with Ms. Granger’s help, of course.”

            “Me??” Ron exclaimed in horror. “Why me??”

            “I understand you used to help your sister Ginny to read and write.”

            “Yes, but that’s because Mother made me…” Ron’s protest was cut short by Albus’ clap on his back.

            “Then it’s settled then.”

            Hermione laughed at the way Ron screwed up his face in annoyance before continuing, “When should we start, sir?”

            “I think we’ll start as soon as you write to your parents asking for your teaching materials. Once you’ve got them, you can start teaching Harry everyday after classes except on weekends. For now, you can help me show him around school, let him familiarize with the place. I haven’t had the time to do so. You know how it is with my line of work, so I’d appreciate it if you do me this favour. Remember to bring him back here when you’re done, though. I’m sure you’ve just heard my password to my office by now.”

            “Sure, Headmaster,” Hermione turned to Harry and asked, “Want to go see the grounds, Harry?”

            Harry nodded eagerly with a grin. Hermione held out her hand, in which Harry took it gladly as he had begun to take a liking to her. Ron got a little jealous at Harry for holding his fiancée’s hand and went forward to hold Harry’s other hand.

            “C’mon then, lad. Let’s go. We’ve got lots to show you.”

            Harry giggled and followed them out of the office, leaving a grinning Albus watching Hermione and Ron looking like parents taking their child on a trip to the park.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the previous chapter, I made up Hermione’s parents’ name. I dunno what their real names are anyways. I couldn’t even find it in Wiki. And before you say anything about Ron and Mione’s parents being friends and them being engaged and all that, remember this is AU. We can create whatever back story we like about it. I even felt that Cedric shouldn’t be six feet under, since Harry never existed as a student in the Hogwarts timeline in this AU world. And personally, I felt like Viktor-bashing. I don’t really like that brawn-without-brain bloke anyways. That said, on with the story!

            Draco finally finished his homework, yawning and nearly falling asleep as he stole a look at the time. It was about a quarter to midnight and his eyes were threatening to shut forever and not open again. Lucky for him, tomorrow was a weekend, so he could afford to sleep late.

            It has been a few months down the road since he and Remus were officially master and slave, and since Harry was separated from Severus into Albus’ care. Draco would occasionally catch sight of Harry whenever he was lucky, but most of the time he never got the chance to approach him and say hi, and other times, Harry wouldn’t give it to him. He would often give him that small grudging look and walk off whenever their eyes met (they always come across each other at a distance, never close range). Draco felt slightly guilty because he knew he was angry of his father separating them. He didn’t dare to tell his godfather either that he saw him once in a while because as much as he wanted to help, he couldn’t beat the Ministry’s system, especially when it comes to giving out punishments. If his father ever caught him helping Severus meet up with Harry, he would probably be in deep shit.

            Remus, who was sitting at his feet in waiting, noticed Draco’s tiredness and got up, saying, “Time for bed, Drake.”

            “I guess,” Draco sighed as he pushed his chair back.

            “That’s a lot of homework you got there, Drake,” Remus commented at the pile of books on his desk, helping to massage Draco’s shoulders.

            “Father didn’t like my last grades. I gotta make sure I gain them back this year, even more so when now I’m in 5th year and O.W.L. is coming soon,” Draco replied, remembering the caning he got from Lucius last year for scoring below the marker Lucius set for him. _A Malfoy never gets below 90. You are a disgrace, boy, and you must be taught a lesson,_ Draco remembered the exact words his father said when he was forced to lie on the floor on his stomach while his father caned him again and again with his snakehead rod. If it weren’t for Remus who butted in saying that his mother needed him for something, he would’ve broken his back and he’d be rendered an invalid.

            Of course, at that time, he wasn’t much in good terms with him and not very grateful either. In fact, when Remus carried him to his bedroom and put cold cream on his bruises to ease the pain, he screamed at him to leave him alone and didn’t want to talk to him for the rest of the day. He felt rather sorry for doing that, now that he thought about it.

            “That’s rather ridiculous of him. You are one of the brightest students in Hogwarts. If I were in his shoes, I’d be damn proud of it.”

            “Yes,” Draco noted, “but if you were in his shoes I won’t have you as a lover.”

            “True enough,” Remus chuckled. He then carried Draco bridal style from his chair and said, “Off to bed with you, dear one.”

            “How about a bedtime fuck?”

            “Normally kids like you would ask for a bedtime story,” Remus grinned as he took him to the bed, teasing him by licking the tip of his nose.

            “I am not a kid anymore, Remy.”

            “True, but,” Remus puts Draco down on the bed, “technically you are a kid compared to me and kids shouldn’t be asking for this.”

            So saying, Remus pinched Draco’s nipples hard, tugging lightly at it, making the boy gasp.

            “I don’t care. I want you, Remy.”

            “Are you sure you don’t want a bedtime story? I’ve helped one of my masters to baby-sit his kids before. I’m a very good storyteller,” Remus asked, tracing his finger lightly on that nipple, teasing him even further.

            “You give me a bedtime story, you will be sleeping on the floor," Draco growled, thrusting his hips up and trying to hump Remus’ leg.

            But Remus was still in a teasing mood. As he made up his story, he reached over to kiss his forehead, “Once upon a time, a young little master was getting horny in bed,” he kissed his neck, “and was so desperate he asked,” he sucked and bit the nipple he pinched, “a werewolf to fuck him. But he didn’t know,” he grabbed Draco’s cock under his pants and teased it till it started to leak, “this werewolf have been pining for him since he stole a look at him,” he started stroking the cock, making the boy hiss, “in the showers.”

            “The shower?” Draco grinned. “So that’s why I keep feeling I’ve been watched. Naughty werewolf.”

            “That beautiful ass of yours really got me going,” Remus said, leaving hickies all over Draco’s body as he undressed him. “I was rather disappointed when you looked so tired just now. I thought we’d never get it on tonight.”

            “I may be tired, but it doesn’t mean I have to do any of the work.”

            “True. I’ll take good care of you tonight,” Remus said as he ran his tongue all the way from his chin down to his chest to his navel and finally to his wanting cock.

            “Hey, wait, you stopped the story,” Draco pouted.

            “I thought you said you’re too old for stories,” Remus grinned as he kissed the head of Draco’s cock.

            “But you got me interested.”

            “Alright,” Remus agreed, sucking the tip of Draco’s shaft. “So the werewolf devised the plan to drive the young master crazy,” he took the head of the shaft in his mouth and sucked while both hands pinched and rubbed both Draco’s nipples, “First he gives him a nice slow suck, licking him occasionally while he gives the young master a nice nipple massage.”

            “He’s a very good wolf,” Draco said before biting his lips, laying his head back to enjoy the ride.

            “Then he takes him whole in his mouth and moves deliberately slow,” Remus continued as he engulfed his cock around his mouth, sucking and deep-throating him really slowly.

            “Fuck, dear Gods…”

            Remus pushed Draco’s hips up until he was literally holding Draco’s ass up his face and continued to deep-throat him slowly while teasing the opening with his fingers.

            “Your…Your story…” Draco was barely able to speak through his moans of ecstasy.

            “Then,” Remus pulled out to continue, “Before the young master explodes, he quickly pulls out and started licking his orifice of love,” he turned to lick Draco’s ass, twirling his tongue around the opening, not exactly entering him.

            “That was a corny way to put it, but it is nice.”

            “He goes deeper and deeper, tasting every inch of the young master’s sweet flesh,” Remus continued his story, then did as his story dictated so, deliberately wriggling his tongue slowly as he made his way in.

            “Fuck, Remus, so good.”

            “The young master tastes so good, like something only immortals have the right to have, but here he was, a mere werewolf enjoying the delicacy of heaven,” he said as he stuck his tongue all the way in, wriggling it as his lips sucked the outer walls.

            “Add your finger.”

            “The werewolf does as the young master commands it,” Remus put in one finger, moving in and out slowly on purpose.

            “With your tongue too.”

            Remus did so, his tongue and his finger working his magic of love on him.

            “So good, Remus,” Draco gasped, his breathing erratic.

            “He keeps teasing the young master, not giving him what he truly wanted,” he continued the ‘story’ in a teasing tone as he stuck his finger deeper and teased the prostate, not really touching it.

            “How about he starts fucking his young master now, please?” Draco growled, his body unable to take this blissful torture any longer, what with his prostate being teased over and over again without even being able to feel the euphoria of seeing white hot flashes in his mind’s eyes.

            “That would be a nice follow-up to the story, but you’re rushing the plotline. Have you forgotten who’s the storyteller here?” Remus asked as he lowered Draco’s hips and lined his cock against the opening, teasing it with the head of his shaft.

            “In me, Remy. Please…” Draco begged, throwing his head from side to side. He wanted to feel that wonderful huge rod in him so badly he could cry.

            “Pleased to see the young master begging for him, he thrusts forward,” Remus said, entering him all the way to the hilt with one swift movement.

            “Gods, yes!”

            “He rams into him, hitting his sweet spot over and over again, until the young master screams,” Remus pounded in, finding the prostate almost immediately, since he knew his little young master’s body so well, and hit it just the way Draco liked it.

            “Harder, Remus, fuck me!”

            Remus soon immersed himself into ramming Draco into the bed, aiming the prostate and hitting it again and again with full force using a bit of his superhuman strength, straying away from the storytelling he was supposed to do. Draco was bombarded with all white hot flashes and stars—he couldn’t tell which is which—that coursed through like numerous huge electrical jolts, as if he was being struck by lightning, that he, too, forgot to remind Remus to continue his story.

            “Yes, yes, YES!!!” Draco screamed, thrashing almost everywhere, his hands gripping tightly against the head of the bed.

            Remus pushed Draco’s legs until the knees were near the boy’s face and piston his cock in and out wildly, fully hitting the sweet spot.

            “Yes, wolf, claim your mate! Fuck me raw, you beast!”

            Remus soon felt himself getting close and started reaching down to pump Draco’s cock, wanting him to come with him. Draco tried to thrust along with Remus’ strokes but was too much in pleasure by the crazy pounding to move. His body arched instead as he felt himself getting closer by Remus’ pumping. He arched once, then twice, then soon came all over his stomach, chest, Remus’ hand and a little on his face because of the body angle he was in. Remus let out a beast-like roar as he came torrents inside Draco seconds later, shuddering as his tremors surged all over his body. Moments later of emptying out each other, Draco relaxed and panted, his eyes closed, to catch his breath. Remus, on the other hand, pulled out and slumped down beside Draco, panting as well.

            “And…they lived happily…ever after…” Remus said breathlessly. “The end.”

            “Good story,” Draco chuckled, his eyes getting heavier after the afterglow settled in. “I really got into it.”

            Remus laughed softly at the pun he made and kissed his forehead, hugging him close to his chest. Fatigue and afterglow took effect on the young boy’s body as he closed his eyes, falling asleep almost immediately.

            Remus, with whatever strength he had left, cleaned up themselves before pulling the covers over themselves, joining Draco in slumber.


	19. Chapter 19

            Harry swept the floor of Albus Dumbledore with Fawkes perched on his shoulder as usual. Albus was at his desk filing and writing in some paperwork to be sent to the Ministry for evaluation. Both of them did their thing in comfortable silence, neither of them bothering the other as they went about in their businesses.

            “You can stop now, Harry. It’s time for your speech lesson. Go meet Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley at their common room.”

            Harry nodded and ran off, but not before putting away the broom and allowing Fawkes to fly back up its stand. It had been a few months down the road since he had been separated from Severus and become Albus Dumbledore’s charge. At first, it was tough. Harry was often afraid to sleep at night because he would have night terrors which would make him wake up screaming at night for his master and Albus had to issue him mild dosages of dreamless sleep medication he got from Madame Pomfrey just so he could slumber without fear. Despite being acquainted with Albus, Hermione and Ron, his body would still instinctively shrink away whenever they took the initiative to touch him, and at one point accidentally reach over and bit Albus’ arm when he tried to hug him to calm him down from his tremors and bit Ron when he tried to give him a friendly ruffle on the head without alerting him his presence first. His timid smile and friendly nature was all for show in the beginning, and he wouldn’t allow anyone to go near him unless he wanted them to. Fawkes, at the time, was the only living thing he was willing to have close body contact with.

            Slowly, after giving him chores and menial tasks to do, he began to ease up around strangers. The daily dose of human contact especially with the other servants and slaves in the castle and the teachers and students when they asked him to run their errands made it easier for him to interact with people other than Severus, and the never failing attention he got from Albus, Hermione and Ron (despite the two men being bitten) gave him the ability to trust people again and allow him to behave like himself again. But still he was more interested in non-human beings than others. He made friends with Peeves the poltergeist and giggled whenever it was playing its usual practical jokes on people (which earned him a bit of a scolding as well for laughing at them) and was rather acquainted with the ghosts of Hogwarts, Nearly Headless Nick and Bloody Baron being his closest ghostly pals, to the point where he was invited to one of the ghosts’ Death Days. They were not surprised of him being friendly with Nearly Headless Nick, since he was such a jolly fellow to begin with, but no one knew why he could tolerate Bloody Baron except Harry himself, because to him, Bloody Baron reminded him a little of Severus’ behaviour: cold and icy on the outside, but actually warm and fuzzy on the inside. He even managed to make friends with the people in portraits when he was doing his sweeping duties along with the other servants. They would engage in animated conversation with him and tell him tales about their lives in the portraits and secrets about the original people they represent, making the boy laugh and giggle and their antiques, and even The Fat Lady and Sir Cardigan entertained him with her horrendous singing and his odd sense of knighthood. All in all, he had a really good time living his new life in Hogwarts and was secretly glad a little that he was here.

            Oddly though, that despite him knowing that his ex-master Severus was a professor in Hogwarts, never once did he get to see him. He never had the chance to even catch a glimpse of him and every time he came to the place where he thought he might be, may it be the potions lab, his office, the staff room, the Great Hall or even the staff’s lounge, he was not there. It was as if there was an invisible force or a crazy coincidental power at work that was keeping him from being able to see him. There were a few close calls where he almost thought that he saw him, but he was soon greatly mistaken, leaving him disappointed and dejected for the rest of the day.

            A week after his stay in Hogwarts, Hermione and Ron, who had written to their parents about Harry’s situation and their need for teaching aids, received them and soon got down to business in teaching Harry how to read, write and talk. As Harry weaved in and out of people and up and down corridors, he began to reminiscence the first day he had lessons with Hermione and Ron…

* * *

_“Do you like living here, Harry?”_

_Harry nodded half-heartedly, not exactly agreeing, but not exactly disagreeing either. His heart was a little on the fence at the moment._

_“It’s great to live here. I’m sure if you try to get along with everyone and try to get used to this place, you might actually like it here,” Hermione recited the password to the Fat Lady and went inside the common room. Ron took Harry’s hand and led him in as well while Hermione went towards the table setting her heavy book bag down. It was a couple of hours after dinnertime and everyone else had retired into their dorms doing goodness knows what teenage witches and wizards do these days, with the occasional student here and there greeting them before going up their dorms as well. Perfect time for the couple to have a little privacy for their teaching lessons._

_“Hey, Har, you_ will _tell us if you have any problems, right?”_

_Harry nodded, smiling convincingly to the gullible Ron, although it was evident that redhead was still skeptical._

_“Let’s start on the picture cards, then,” Hermione sat down and accio-ed a chair up for Harry to sit before digging through her book bag to produce a stack of thick cardboard cards tied together in a rubber band, “My mum just owled me these last night.”_

_“Alright. You start teaching him first while I look for the teaching things I asked Mother to owl me. It has gotta be somewhere…” Ron muttered the last words as he rushed off to his dorm to look for it at his bed._

_Hermione took off the rubber band and randomly picked out one card. She held it up in front of Harry and the boy saw that it was a splotch of red on the middle of the card._

_“Red, Harry. Say ‘Red’.”_

_“R…R…” Harry tried to pronounce it but couldn’t get the last sound out._

_“OK, you have the R sound down,” Hermione sighed pitifully at Harry. She tried other cards but Harry still only managed to get the first sound right. It was then she realized that she had totally forgotten that Harry had never ever even learnt to read or write, thus he wouldn’t even know the sound of the word._ Stupid unnecessary assignments, _she thought to herself, then voiced out, “OK, different angle then. We need to teach you sounds first.”_

_“I found them,” Ron announced as he came down with an alphabet book the size of an encyclopedia and a mini chalkboard with a box of chalks to go with it. “Bloody hell, the stuff I used to teach Ginny are covered with dust and Mother forgot to clean them before owling it to me. This is ridiculous.”_

_“Well, she’s older now,” Hermione smiled at Ron’s complaint. “You can’t blame her for being a little forgetful.”_

_With that, he tried to sweep and blow the dust off, resulting in a fit of coughing and choking and watery eyes and a giggling little boy._

_“Not funny, lad,” Ron gave Harry a mock glare. He then turned to Hermione and asked, “So, how’s it going?”_

_“Not good,” Hermione shook her head. “I forgot that he doesn’t know the letters or the words. His illiteracy is causing him to unable to form sounds.”_

_“Well, I guess this comes in,” Ron said as he put the alphabet book in front of them, causing the dust to flutter about them and making them cough as well. Ron grinned and teased, “Now you know how it feels.”_

_“Can it, Ron,” Hermione scolded, “and let’s get started.”_

_“Alright,” Ron rubbed his chin proudly as he opened the book. “Let the maestro do his work. OK, Har, this is A. Say ‘A’…”_

_With Hermione and Ron’s help, Harry soon learnt to read and write his first few alphabets._

* * *

            Harry soon found himself standing in front of the stairs, but he didn’t dare to go up. He decided to wait at the foot of the stairs for the Gryffindor couple. No matter how many times he came here to sweep the stairs, he was still not used to it moving around and it often got him lost. And the paintings and portraits were not exactly helping him when they were screaming and yelling out instructions and guides—disagreeing and arguing at each other in the process—as to how to get up, wait and get down the stairs, ending up with either one of the students kind enough to take his hand to lead him down.

            While Harry waited, Hermione quickly made it past all the other students out of the Great Hall after their dinner to meet up with Harry for their usual nightly lessons. Ron quickly gulped down his last drop of pumpkin juice and chased after his fiancée.

            “Hey, Mione! Wait up! I’m the teacher too, you know!”

            “Have you notice that Prof. Snape looks like the living dead lately? I don’t think he has eaten either. I saw him at the Great Hall with the other professors just now and he didn’t even acknowledge either of them. He barely even touched his dinner and was kinda staring into space.”

            “Well, technically he has always looked like the living dead, but yeah, now that you mentioned it, he does look a little more like the Grim Reaper.”

            “Seamus and Dean both exploded his cauldron in Potions Class today and Snape didn’t even bat an eyelid. Did you notice that?”

            “Yeah, I thought he was going to either make them take detention or minus our points as usual, but he didn’t.”

            “He just told them to clean it up and dismissed the class early,” Hermione sighed. “I wonder what’s gotten into him. Snape has never been this way…Oh, hi, Harry.”

            Harry smiled in relief at the sight of the ‘Old Married Couple of Hogwarts’ approaching him.

            “Hey there, Har. Waited long?” Ron asked. When Harry shook his head, he continued, “So are you ready for your lessons tonight, lad?”

            Harry nodded eagerly.

            “Let’s go up the common room then.”

            Harry quickly got up and took one end of Hermione’s robe and one end of Ron’s robe—a habit he developed since he started hanging out with them—and was ready to go. Many teased them that they looked like they have already been married for years and looked almost like a family, but after hearing it for the gazillion-th time, they were used to it. In fact, whenever the thought cross their mind about getting married and having children of their own, the couple would blush and smile secretly as if they shared the same thought, making Harry giggle at their flushed faces.

            A few hours later, their lesson was done. Harry had finally learnt to read the entire list of alphabets from A to Z without fail, and could write perfect alphabet lines as well. He even learnt a few simple words from the picture cards. Ron gave him a chocolate frog and Hermione gave him a colouring book and a box of colouring pencils as rewards.

            “You learned well, lad,” Ron said when Harry gave them the “Why the gesture?” look, “I think you finally deserve a reward. It’s getting late now. Let me walk you down the stairs. I’m sure you can find your way back to Dumbledore’s office from there, right?”

            Harry nodded, then gave a goodnight smile to Hermione.

            “Night, Harry,” Hermione smiled and waved, putting the books away. “Same time tomorrow, OK? We’ll learn some more new words soon.”

            After Harry waved goodbye to Hermione, Ron took his hand and led Harry down all the way to the foot of the moving stairs. As soon as Harry set foot to the solid floor, Ron let go off the boy’s arm gently.

            “Alright, here we are. This is where I leave you. Sorry I can’t walk you back to Dumbledore’s office, but I’m kinda tired. Tomorrow is gonna be a long day. Besides, I heard the teachers are having some sort of late night meeting and they won’t be over until,” Ron stole a look at his pocket watch, “probably ten minutes later. If you hurry, you might just catch Prof. Dumbledore at the staff meeting room. I’d tell you the password now, but you’re still new to words and I’d hate to have prying ears hearing the password and enter the professor’s office unannounced.”

            Harry shrugged, giving him an “It’s OK” look.

            “Well then, good night, Har. See ya tomorrow.”

            “Bai-bai,” Harry giggled as he tottered off.

            As he quickly made his way to the direction of the staff meeting room, Severus was walking back to his room from the meeting at the opposite direction. His eyes were unfocused, deep circles embedded underneath it, and his face going sallow and sunken in. One glance at him you’d think he just came out of a crypt. Everyone had been asking him whether he was alright, but he didn’t seem to hear them. He had gone by his days mechanically and his teaching didn’t seem as alive or cynical or sarcastic as it used to. In fact, his students almost wished that he was back to his usual vindictive self, Draco included (even though he knew the exact cause to this). Even during the meeting, he wasn’t really listening. His eyes were distant and his mind was pretty much far away in La La Land, and no one was able to get him back on track. Only Albus seemed to know his plight and allowed Severus’ lack of participation.

            Harry, on the other hand, was rushing towards the direction of the meeting room, hoping that he could catch up with Albus and be able to return to the office and to the room connected to his office. The last time he missed Albus was when Hermione tried to teach him to remember the password because she had to go off on a student council meeting and couldn’t send him back to the office, but when he got there, he could barely remember the words and had a hard time pronouncing it that he ended up sleeping in the corridor instead. Luckily, Rubeus Hagrid was doing his rounds that night and found him there. He quickly picked the sleeping boy up, said the password and entered the office to pass him to a worried old Headmaster to be put into his room. He didn’t want that to happen again. In fact, he was so determined to get there as quick as possible that he accidentally bumped into someone.

            “Ah!”

            The person he bumped into was none other than Severus Snape, his beloved master he had not seen for so many months. Of course, being the lost soul he was, Severus barely noticed him. He just moved to the side and kept walking. Harry didn’t realize it at first, but when he smelt the familiar scent of mixed potions on his robes, he almost immediately recognized to whom the scent belonged to. He spun round and saw the familiar back of the master that he had been denied visitation ever since he had come to this huge medieval castle of a school.

            “Mah?”

            Severus still walked on, zoned out and barely hearing him.

            “Mah!” Harry chased after him and pulled at his robe, calling him in an almost begging tone.

            Severus turned, blinking absentmindedly. His eyes were still hollow, not even registering who was in front of him. Harry gasped in horror to see his beloved master looking like a zombie. Had it been so long since they seen each other? What happened to his one and only love? Why did he look like that? Has he been eating properly or sleeping well? Why didn’t he recognize him? It was he, his little pet! Why wouldn’t he call his name or call him ‘pet’? Harry immediately cried pools of tears and hugged him, desperately calling him “Mah~!!!” over and over again, trying to get him back into his senses.

            “Ha…Harry…?” Severus breathed, finally stirring as he felt the familiar grip he had been missing for so many months. With a trembling hand, he reached out to touch the boy’s hair. _I must have been dreaming,_ he thought, his mind unable to believe what his eyes saw. _But…but his hair is right here. If this is a dream, dear gods of Merlin, I never want to wake up._

“Mah~!” Harry continued to cry as he wrapped his arms around the poor man’s neck, trying to get him to notice him.

            “There, there, pet,” Severus said as he picked him up, brushing his hair out of his jade-green eyes. “Your hair has grown.”

            Harry struggled to try telling him that he missed him so much, and that he was a little angry at Severus for not visiting, but he couldn’t say anything. A few months of learning was not enough to get all the words he needed to say out of his mouth. Frustrated by his inadequacy, he hit out on Severus’ shoulders, venting out his upset feelings. He wanted nothing more than to go back and live the life they used to, but he couldn’t even express it. He cried even more bitterly as he reached up to kiss him, while his hands continued to hit at the broad shoulders that was his only solace he ever wanted in the whole wide world. Oh! what he’d give to have those broad shoulders near him and the wide protective arms around him again.

            “Don’t hurt yourself,” Severus said, barely batted an eye. Running his hand over Harry’s hair, he said sadly, “I am no longer your master, pet.”

            “No, no, no, no!” Harry shook his head desperately, screaming in a muffled tone the new word he only knew how to express such denial over Severus’ statement as he kissed him desperately.

            Severus kissed back, but he kept the kisses light. He knew that if he kissed him like he wanted to, the dream would come to the end—and that was the last thing he wanted happen—resulting into Harry hitting his shoulders again, whining, his tear-filled eyes seeming to ask “Why don’t you kiss me like you used to? Why? Don’t you love me anymore?”

            “Let’s just enjoy this dream while we can,” Severus said, his hands tightened around Harry’s shirt. A tear slipped out of his eye as he whispered in a choked voice, “I miss you very much, Harry.”

            “I…ere…I…ere…” Harry whined and hugged him tight. It seemed that he was trying to say “I’m here” to convince him that this was not a dream, but his words could only go that far.

            “I love you, pet,” Severus kissed his hair, rocking the sobbing Harry back and forth. “Shh, love. I am here.”

            “Harry. There you are.”

            Severus tensed as he looked up to see Albus standing there with a serious face. Apparently, Albus was wondering why Harry was late and went out to search for him. He was worried that he would end up leaving the boy stranded outside the office again, since he didn’t have the vocal capacity to recite the password, but he didn’t need to look any further. He saw Severus hugging Harry at a rather secluded corner and smiled. _About time they met,_ the old man sighed in relief, but he was worried that if anyone saw them like this and noticed Albus not doing anything to stop them, he/she might go off tattletale this to the Ministry, resulting to an ugly end to their reunion. _Better put up a front for now,_ he thought as he approached them with a pretend serious face.

            _No, not yet. Dear gods, please, just a bit longer,_ Severus begged inwardly as he held Harry protectively in his arms. _How could you be so cruel as to end my dream like this?_

            “Severus, you know the rules. Cornelius said ‘See but not Touch’,” Albus said, still pretending to look serious.

            Harry cried and shook his head, hugging Severus tight. Severus took a deep breath and nodded. The last thing he wanted was to get things ugly between him and the Ministry.

            “Yes, you are right, Albus,” Severus set Harry down, half-heartedly pushing the whining Harry off.

            “But,” Albus’ serious facial expression turned into a fatherly smile, “since we had such a fruitful meeting tonight and I’m going to be a little busy in the office to look after Harry for the moment, why don’t you baby-sit him for a while? You haven’t really had dinner yet, have you?”

            Harry shook his head. Indeed he hadn’t eaten. He always waited for Hermione and Ron to finish his lessons first before having his dinner. That was his habit.

            “You must have a long day studying. You go have dinner with Severus. I’ll vouch for you. Go on, before I change my mind.”

            “Yes. Thank you very much, Albus,” Severus nodded. He quickly took Harry’s hand and walked to his room, not wanting to waste this precious moment of chance. His face may look calm and collected, but inside, his heart was leaping with joy, sprouting daisies and burning out wondrous imaginary fireworks.

            As Harry smiled through his tears as he waved goodbye to Albus who was smiling back at him kindly, he was ultimately glad that he was being so nice to let them spend time together after so long.

            If he had thought Albus was a nice master, he clearly underestimated him.


	20. Chapter 20

            Without a moment’s hesitation, Severus took the boy all the way from the hallway into his room almost as quick as a flash. Harry was overwhelmed; he had never seen his master move so fast before. Once inside Severus closed, locked and warded the door with whatever spells to keep unwanted visitors out and pushed Harry against it, kissing him hard. Harry was taken by surprise at first but he didn’t resist. In fact he started kissing him back just as hard. He missed those pair of lips so bad he could kill for it. Severus ran his hand down Harry's body, feeling the lean body he had been deprived of touching for what felt like forever. Harry didn't resist as he let out a moan. Tonight he was going to let his master do whatever he wants to him, no questions asked. His body wanted it. His body craved for it. And tonight, he was going to get it.

            “Harry…” Severus breathed, kissing down his chin and the neck as he knelt down, pulling Harry against him.

            “M…Mah…” Harry was breathless as he felt his Master's lips all over him. Oh! how he missed those lips.

            “You’re so beautiful, pet,” Severus started pulling off the vest of Harry’s clothes, kissing each new patch of skin. “So beautiful, just as the first time I saw you.”

            Harry moaned in pleasure, his lustful jade-green eyes seemed to be saying “Take me, master. Do whatever you want with me”.

            Severus threw open the shirt within, getting rather impatient with the number of buttons on it and decided to just rip it, not caring whether he pulled out a button or not. It was frustrating enough that his pet had to wear that old unused Hogwarts uniform that Albus gave him with that infuriating vest revealing the inner shirt as another layer barring him away from his beautiful boy’s luscious skin, and now with that shirt out of the way, he could finally get a good look at the body he had been denied from for so many months.

            “Was I the last to be inside you?” Severus asked warily.

            Harry smiled and nodded, indicating that no one had ever touched him since the day he left the manor.

            “Good,” Severus said in relief as he gave one last kiss on Harry’s chest and leaned up. “I don’t think I can wait to take you on the bed. But I do hope to have you twice before we part tonight.”

            With that he leaned in, kissing him hard before pushing him onto the floor, his own clothes quickly magicked away hastily, revealing his soaring manhood. Harry kissed him back, allowing him to do as he pleased. Severus almost literally tore off Harry’s pants and opened his legs, sitting between them in position. He first tried to tease Harry’s opening with his fingers to get him ready, but seeing the way Harry moan and whine at his touch, his self-control shattered like a bull in a china shop. He couldn’t wait any longer. All that pent-up sexual frustration for numerous months had to go. He cast a quick lubrication spell and prep spell, before thrusting into the boy in one long slide, making the boy gasp as he felt the older man enter him. Harry’s heart was blossoming once again in many a month; he really missed that cock.

            “I hope I didn’t hurt you, pet,” Severus held himself back a little, looking down at his beloved and cupping his fair cheeks. “I don’t want our time together to be a painful one.”

            Harry shook his head and pulled Severus’ face down to kiss him, moving his hips to bring himself deeper onto Severus’ cock, uttering the word that they were both all too familiar with.

            “Fuck…”

            “Your wish is my command.”

            Severus started pounding into Harry hard and fast, kissing like no tomorrow. Harry howled and screamed in pleasure as he felt his prostate being hit again and again. Tears of lust, bliss and happiness poured out of his eyes as he finally got what he had missed for so long.

            “I love you, Harry. I haven’t slept well in weeks, I keep seeing your beautiful body,” Severus whispered in his ear as he pounded into him vigorously.

            A memory of Ron teaching him how to say ‘I love you’ properly came in mind. Slowly but surely, Harry whispered back to his lover’s ear, “I…love…y…ou.”

            Severus smiled, kissing his cheek. Finally, he had heard those three complete words he had longed to hear from his pet’s lips. He leaned up, bringing Harry with him, and lay down. “Ride me pet, show me how much you missed me.”

            Harry was only too happy to oblige. He pushes himself down quickly, ignoring the momentary sting, until the sweet spot was hit and started pummeling himself onto him over and over again, panting like a dog as he let out scream after scream of pleasure. Severus, while letting his pet ride him, played with his nipples, squeezing and twisting the already rock-hard nubs. Harry hissed at Severus’ contact, his eyes shut tight as he enjoyed the feeling of it as he continues to impale himself onto Severus’ cock, relentlessly assaulting his prostate to see the white hot flashes in his mind’s eye and sending his mind, and cock, soaring up in the heavens. The older man could tell that if Harry carried on any longer, he would erupt sooner or later. He decided to tease him a little.

            “Come when you want to, but do not touch your cock.”

            Harry felt himself getting close. He needed release very badly as his cock throbbed painfully, the tip leaking immensely with pre-cum. His tearful eyes begged him to touch him—he wanted to come so bad—but Severus continued pinching his nipple, not moving to Harry’s cock to help him out. Harry started sobbing, begging with his eyes to touch him, fresh tears pouring out of them.

            “Mah…Mah…!!! P…P…” Harry tried to say the word ‘Please’ but couldn’t. Fortunately, Severus knew what he tried to mean.

            “Sorry, but you are going to come on my cock alone, pet," he hissed. It was sweet torture fucking Harry. He wanted to wait for Harry to come but he might just come on his own if the boy carried on ramming himself onto him like that.

            Soon, after a few more thrusts up and down the older man’s length, Harry let out a scream as he landed on Severus’ cock and knocked onto his sweet spot a little too hard at the last part, forcing the cum that caused his little boyhood to throb so painfully to squirt out and spill over Severus’ chest and stomach. Severus quickly pulled Harry still by his hips, coming inside him as soon as he felt the ring of the boy’s muscles tightened impossibly around him. He panted, his eyes nearly crossed as he came down from his high.

            Harry rode out his tremors, shivering in ecstasy, then started sobbing, giving Severus a “You're so mean” look for bullying him into coming.

            “Oh God, Harry, still I hurt you?” He raised his shaking hand to cup Harry’s cheek.

            Harry wanted to explain why he was crying, but seeing Severus was genuinely distraught to see him crying like that, he thought it would be best not to upset him more by telling what he did that made him cry. Besides, it wasn’t the real reason he was tearing up. He shook his head and held onto Severus’ wrists, tilting his head so that his face was leaning against his hands to feel his touch.

            “Then why are you crying, pet?” he said, casting a cleaning spell and pulling Harry down on his chest.

            Harry smiled wryly and gave him a look that spoke “I just missed you so much” in his eyes. Harry soon pulled out and wrapped his arms around Severus and sobbed, not caring about the cum that was leaking out of him.

            “Shh, love. I’m here,” Severus comforted him with a reassuring hug. He was still a bit weak after coming so much, so they stayed on the floor for a while. He whispered a cleaning spell on Harry and held him close in his arms.

            “I…love…y…ou…” Harry whispered, still sobbing a little but it had slowly subsided.

            “It looks like you learnt a lot for your speech teacher. Are you being a good boy when they teach you?”

            Harry nodded and demonstrated what he learnt by reciting the alphabets A to Z perfectly.

            “Very good. I always knew you were smart,” Severus smiled and ran his hand through Harry’s hair, resulting in Harry grinning proudly at him. After lying there for a few moments, Severus voiced out, “We better get off the floor; my old bones are going to start to ache.”

            Harry nodded and climbed off Severus. He quickly dressed himself in the old unused Hogwarts uniform Albus gave him, but Severus stopped him.

            “I didn’t say you could dress, pet. Remember what I said?”

            Harry looks a little blur for a while then blushed really hard, remembering what Severus had said before ravishing him like a rag doll, “Oh…”

            Severus smiled. He really enjoyed teasing them. “What would you like to have for dinner?”

            Harry shrugged, his eyes saying “Whatever you’re having”. Severus made a fire-call to the kitchen telling a random servant to send in whatever was still leftover from dinner in the Great Hall to be sent into his office. While waiting, he went over to the couch and sat down.

            “Come over here and tell me what else you have learned.”

            Harry had heaps to talk about his stay in Hogwarts, but was sure that no matter how many hand gestures and charades he do and no matter how much Severus was used to his expressions, he would never get his story through. There had to be something that he could use to convey what he wanted to say. He looked around the office and saw a piece of scrap parchment and a quill. Knowing that it was the best way to tell his story, he pointed at it, asking with his eyes if he can have it.

            “Uh, sure,” Severus said as he accio-ed the parchment and quill with the bottle of ink for Harry, not sure why he wanted it.

            Finding his comfort zone on Severus’ leg like he used to, he decided to doodle his story, since he couldn’t say much in words. First he drew a stick figure of himself and Albus introducing him to Hermione and Ron, making sure he added their features so that Severus could recognize them.

            “Ah. Granger and Weasley,” Severus nodded in understanding.

            He then drew Hermione and Ron teaching him how to read, write and talk, with a speech bubble on Ron teaching him the ABCs.

            “That Weasley boy teaches you too?” Severus raised a brow skeptically, but mostly in surprise.

            Harry nodded and smiled. He then drew himself cleaning Albus’ office and Fawkes perched on his shoulder watching him work.

            “So you clean his office. Seems like Fawkes took a liking on you. No one touches you like I do, right?”

            Harry shook his head, give him a “You have my word” look. Then he drew himself sweeping the corridors and dusting the portraits and other things around the castle along with other servants and under the caretaker Argus Filch’s supervision. He made sure to draw Argus Filch a lot meaner than he should just to spite him, making Severus chuckle.

            “That old crooney is a bigger ass than I am, that I can say. What else do you do?”

            He drew himself helping out with the students’ laundry where he got it through a chute that leaked out dozens upon dozens of clothes through the transportation magic the student use to send the clothes to the chute. Then he drew himself going to the staff lounge to prepare tea for those who come in to relax.

            “I guess I will be getting tea more often,” Severus smiled at Harry. “No wonder some of the crumpets I ate tasted familiar.”

            He then drew himself helping other teachers carry their workbooks to the office or to the classes they were supposed to teach (Severus was a little unhappy about that since he had never gotten the chance to have Harry helping him out like that), and then he drew himself helping the Quidditch team put away the sports items and cleaning the Quidditch field along with Hagrid.

            “You are a busy little boy, aren’t you?”

            Harry grinned, then drew himself in the school kitchen helping out to prepare food. He was so engrossed in his drawing that he accidentally drew something he didn’t want Severus to know: the Head Cook beating him with a spatula for burning the stew. Severus’ eyes flickered for a second in anger and secretly vowed to himself that he would have a “personal talk” with the Head Cook. But for now, he didn’t want to see anymore of this. He grabbed Harry’s hand and took the quill out.

            “Enough.”

            Harry gasped at Severus’ sudden reaction, feeling confused. Severus pulled him close and put away the parchment and quill, not wanting him to feel any threat from him or find out what his hidden vendetta towards the Head Cook were as he looked over his face.

            “Not only your hair has grown longer, you have grown taller too.”

            Harry grinned and nodded. The exercise he had going up and down the castles and the food he had in the castle and what was given as tidbits by Albus, Hermione and Ron contributed to his growth rate. Now his feet no longer dangled in the mid-air whenever he sat on something.

            “I still have your playroom though, with that beautiful playhouse still waiting for you to play with it,” Severus ran his thumbs over Harry’s cheek, loving the feel of it. Harry was glad; he was beginning to miss the playhouse. The older man leaned in, kissing him softly. Harry kissed him back and Severus pulled him closer, the boy’s head resting on his chest to let him hear the soft beating of his heart.

            “I missed you so much, love.”

            “Mah…” Harry hugged him back, as if saying that he missed him just as much.

            Soon a knock on the door was heard. Severus inquired the identity of the person and found out that it was the kitchen servant girl bringing in the dinner. He allowed her to enter and she was quite taken aback to see both Severus and Harry quite naked sitting on the couch like it was nobody’s business, well, more so for Severus. Harry was blushing like heck as he hid his face onto Severus’ shoulder. Severus nodded and gestured her to leave the dinner he ordered somewhere and dismissed her. The servant left the tray of food on the table and walked away a little awkwardly, pretending not to see them in lack of clothing. As soon as she was gone, Harry’s hunger pangs kicked in as he saw the spread and started drooling.

            “Nummy~!”

            “Come sit up here,” Severus gestured as he went to the chair at the table and patted his lap to signal Harry to sit on it, just like old times.

            Harry immediately found his comfort zone on his lap. He really missed sitting on it. He couldn’t get enough of it. Severus started feeding him, much like he did when they were first together, while Harry opened his mouth to be fed, feeling glad that they were back where they were used to, even for just this night. As Severus ate his share, Harry stared at him watching him eat.

            “Still hungry, pet?”

            Harry shook his head, smiling at him sweetly. As long as he could be with Severus, he didn’t care if he starved to death.

            “Very well, more time to remember me by.”

            Harry blushed, giving him the “You’re mean” pout. He then gave him a naughty grin, as saying “You have to catch me first” before ducking under the table.

            “Pet,” Severus sighed, smiling. He got down under the table, playing along with him as he said, “Come back here.”

            Harry giggled and deliberately crawled away from him.

            “Naughty boy,” he scolded playfully and crawled after him. When he was almost going to catch up with him and was about to reach up to grab him, the boy squealed and crawled out of the table and hid behind the couch they were sitting. Severus got up from under the table and pretended to look for him, even though he knew where he was.

            “Where, oh, where is that naughty little pet of mine?”

            Harry giggled quietly from behind the couch.

            “Well then, I guess he doesn’t want a kiss.”

            Startled that his master was not going to give him a kiss, he quickly crawled out from behind the couch and hugged his waist, not wanting to let go.

            “There he is,” Severus chuckled and picked him up like he weighed nothing, although it was pretty obvious that he had gained a little weight due to his height since he last saw him. Seeing Harry pout, he asked, “What’s wrong, love?”

            Harry glared a little grudgingly at him, his eyes seeming to say “You always tease me, you naughty master”.

            “Aww, poor thing,” Severus smiled and nuzzled his nose against the boy’s. “Can I make it up to you?”

            Harry giggled, feeling ticklish at Severus’ nuzzle, and shook his head, meaning that everything was fine and his presence was good enough for him.

            “I am sorry I have not come to see you,” Severus held him more and brought him back to the couch, making him sit on his lap again.

            Harry shook his head again, meaning it was alright.

            “I have seen you. You may not see me, but I do see you, from afar, that is. It hurts too much to see you and not be able to touch. I know there were a few times you actually thought you saw me, and I was struggling with my mind whether or not to confirm your suspicions, but I didn’t want to make this punishment any worse than it is. So I spent time in only my office and class room and then went home. I sometimes deliberately avoid you and started finishing work and going home early so that I don’t have to bear the pain of seeing you but unable to get close to you. Slowly, I started to convince myself that if I cannot see you, you do not exist. I’m sorry for being such a fool…”

            Harry took Severus’ cheeks in his cupped hands and kissed his hooked nose, telling him that there was nothing to forgive. He then looked at him with questioning eyes, wanting to know how the others at home are doing.

            “Surprisingly, after one week of you gone, everyone started missing you. They wish you were home. You made their master happy. Even though I just pretended not to acknowledge it, I knew that they had seen a drastic change on me ever since you were gone. I was lost most of the time and I no longer address their presence like I used to. Sometimes they even suffer my wrath when I had a bad day at work and took it out on them, but mostly they knew my tantrums was because you were not there to calm me and make feel alive again.

            “Longbottom and Creevey were making their reaction to your absence rather obvious though. Creevey would sigh whenever he served my meals and not see you around on my lap as usual and sometimes would cry whenever he makes the bed and did the things you usually do for me. There were a few times I see him hugging Leo in the playhouse and pouring his eyes out, and it got to the point where I actually had to get down on my knees to hold him and comfort him of his tears. I caught Longbottom occasionally calling out your name whenever he thought he saw silhouettes of you in the house and there were a few times when I stayed up late doing nothing in particular, I could hear Longbottom’s voice screaming in his sleep and waking up the whole house rambling about you being abused by Albus, and he, too, had to be comforted by me sometimes.

            “Occasionally I would hear the hired help gossiping amongst each other about how quiet the manor felt without you around pitter-pattering and tottering up and down the place doing your job with your expressive face and your less-than-articulate words. Some of them did their usual task, but out of habit, they waited for you to come and get it for them to be passed to me before realizing that you were no longer in the house. The first few weeks, the Head Housekeeper was at a lost as to who to order around because you were not there to listen to her talk of the day and no one else could tolerate or understand her orders except you. The meals felt slightly less delicious because the cooks in the kitchen were not motivated by your presence to prepare the best for me. Hell, even the Head Gardener missed having you around to spoil his garden.”

            Harry laughed a little, finding it hard to believe it since he was reminded of how the Head Gardener always chased him away from the garden.

            “Has Albus been treating you well?”

            Harry smiled assuredly, indicating the old man’s been treating him well.

            “Good. I am glad.”

            Harry stole a glimpse at the time and saw that it was very late. He quickly got off Severus to dress. Severus sighed as he saw the time as well. No matter how much he wanted to ravish him again, he knew that he couldn’t ask for more. Someone maybe nearby to discover that Harry was not with Albus and may go off gallivanting with the news of Severus in breach of his punishment. He was half-glad that he had the opportunity to have Harry with him when he could and was thankful to Albus for being so generous to allow them this reunion. Harry heard his sigh, remembering Severus’ wishes to make love to him twice before he left and that they had only did it once, and reached up to stroke his chin apologetically.

            “It’s alright, pet. It was my fault to begin with for making you come here,” Severus lamented as he took his hand, kissing it. “Gods willing, I will try to see you sooner, Harry. But for now, you must go. I don’t want anyone breaking down my doors.”

            Harry, after finished dressing, jumped up to wrap his arms around Severus’ neck and kissed him deeply. Severus kissed him back, running his hand through his smooth hair before pushing him away gently.

            “Go, pet.”

            Harry nodded and left reluctantly, taking one last look at Severus before leaving. Luckily he ran into Prof. Minerva McGonagall, who was doing her rounds with Hagrid to catch any students still out after curfew, and she was kind enough to lead him back to the office and recite the password for him to enter.

            Severus, who was worried for Harry, followed him secretly behind to see that he was in good hands. After feeling relieved to see Minerva taking his pet up to Albus’ office, he ran his hand through his hair before returning back to his office and turned in for the night.

            For once after so many months since he had Harry, he slept in his bed at the staff hostel.


	21. Chapter 21

            Since their fateful reunion, life in Hogwarts got a lot smoother for both Harry and Severus. Severus didn’t have to hide or avoid places where Harry would show up anymore, but true to the punishment the Ministry had given him, he kept his distance and his hands off Harry. Harry didn’t mind the lack of contact. He understood that no matter what, they had to abide by the rules so as not to create any friction or trouble for Albus and the Ministry. They went about their lives as if none of this ever happened, and Severus had more or less finally returned back to his old self, much to the relief of his people in the manor and his godson Draco, and more or less so for the other students and his fellow colleagues. His appetite has returned to normal and he was sleeping better. The only thing that changed was that now, he spent more nights in the staff hostel rather than going home, and the reasons were understandable.

            Harry, on the other hand, no longer gave Draco any grudging looks when they crossed paths. In fact, whenever Draco had the chance to ditch his henchmen, they would sit down at a secret area chit-chatting amongst themselves. Occasionally, Draco would give him some of his own pre-school books for him to read and would teach him how to pronounce words and learn new ones, and would then reward him with candies like chocolate frogs, Bertie Bott’s All-Flavoured Beans, pumpkin pies and multi-coloured cotton candies and lollipops. Thanks the extra help, Harry soon learnt more words and can read a few easy-to-read books on his own under Hermione and Ron’s tutelage, and could even start talking in almost complete sentences, although he was still rough on the edges. He was much livelier now and did his job with no complaints. He had started to see Albus in a new light and viewed him more than just a master. Occasionally, he would call him ‘Grandpa Albus’ because he did feel like as if the old man was more of a grandparent figure than a master.

            Besides, Severus had always been his one and only master. He would never be more loyal to anyone else except him. As long as he got him in sights and had the occasional love-making whenever Albus allowed him, he was happy.

            Right now, the boy had just done cleaning up the staff lounge after the professor’s tea break was over and was taking all the cups, plates and the teapot in a tray and walked towards the direction of the kitchen. Coming from the opposite direction was the dreaded Lucius Malfoy. He was walking through the Halls to find Albus, feeling very upset after hearing reports from Draco’s henchmen about Draco getting a detention. He would deal with Draco later, but for now, he vowed to give Albus a piece of his mind as he gripped his snakehead cane tightly with a grudge. No one had the right to punish his son. Only he was allowed to. He was so engrossed in his angry thoughts that he didn’t see Harry coming out of the corner. He bumped into him, sending everything flying and crashing all over the stony floor.

            “Watch where you are going, you imbecile!” Lucius yelled, not in a mood to admit that it was his fault he banged into him.

            “Sorry…Sorry…” Harry apologized as he hurriedly picked up the smashed cups and the teapot that fell on the floor.

            Lucius looked down to see who the idiot that hit him so carelessly was and almost stopped in his tracks. He smirked evilly. He definitely recognized that unruly ebony-black hair and those pair of jade-green eyes anywhere.

            “Well, well, well, you can talk now. What a surprise.”

            Harry shivered as he recognized the voice. He looked up and went pale when he saw who the owner of the voice was, “Y…You…”

            “How have you been, _slave_?”

            Harry shrank back at the last cold word that came out of his mouth. He could tell from the tone that he was more than just wanting to engage in ‘friendly’ conversation. He picked up the last piece of the smashed cup into the tray and tried to run off, but was quickly dragged back with the Accio spell with the flick of Lucius’ wand. Again, as Lucius wrapped his arm around Harry’s waist from behind, he made him drop his tray, smashing the already shattered china into another dozen pieces.

            “Where are you going, slave? It is not proper to run from a Master,” Lucius said with a wicked smile across his face.

            “You not Master,” Harry hissed, still trying to get the hang of speaking in full sentences.

            “I am to. Maybe not to you, but I am. You, my dear, are a slave.”

            “No!” Harry whined as he tried to get out of his grasp. “No touch me. Go away. You bad.”

            “You have no right in that, my dear,” Lucius said as he grabbed him and dragged him into a secluded area of the hall where no one passed by. He threw him against the wall, pulled him up by the shirt and turned him around.

            “No! No! Stop! I dun wan!” Harry screamed as he struggled.

            “Shut up, slave!” Lucius said as he put one hand over Harry’s mouth and pulled down Harry’s pants with the other. “I have been waiting for this for a long time.”

            Harry let out a muffled scream, trying hard to struggle out of Lucius’ stronghold. Lucius lost his patience and hit him on the top of his head with the cane.

            “I said shut up, slave. If you are good it will end soon," Lucius growled as he opened his pants, revealing his aroused manhood.

            Harry felt dizzy from the blow on his head, but even then, he knew what Lucius was going to do after seeing the size of his length. The thought of what Lucius was about to do made him tear up real bad, but the older blonde was not someone who would be moved by tears. Without even the courtesy to prep him or lube himself up, he entered him with one strong thrust, making the poor boy let out a strangled scream as he felt as if he was torn in half.

            “So good and tight,” Lucius breathed as he ran his tongue along Harry’s ear. “No wonder Severus didn’t want to give you up.”

            “No~! No~! Stop~! No~!” Harry cried and begged, but his screams were muffled by Lucius’ hand.

            “Just think of this as payback,” Lucius said as he started pounding into him.

            Harry let out scream after scream of pain. He tried to get out of his grasp but the older blonde was too strong and was holding both his wrists above his head with one hand in a death grip. Besides, he was pinned between the wall and the man and there was no room for escape. Once in a while, Lucius’ pounding would hit his prostate, making the boy moan involuntarily and his cock awaken with arousal, but most of the time, he felt pain, and it was a pain worse than death itself.

            “Almost there…” Lucius grunted. A few more hard thrusts later, he came inside the boy long and hard. Harry could feel Lucius’ seed filling him and cried pool of tears. He had never felt so filthy in his whole life. Not even the gang bang he had when he was with one of his previous masters could make him feel this dirty.

            “That was pretty nice for a used merchandise,” Lucius pulled out and cast a cleaning spell on both of them, leaving no trace of evidence, not even the blood he had caused on Harry’s ass, on them before putting himself away and readjusted his clothes. He turned Harry around by grabbing a handful of his hair, hissing, “Tell anyone about this and I swear you will never see the light of day again. Besides, Severus will never want you again if he knows this. He hates it when others touch what is his.”

            Harry widened his eyes at the thought of Severus never wanting him and nodded desperately. The last thing he wanted was his beloved master to disown him.

            “Good boy,” Lucius said as he roughly let the boy go. “Get dressed and clean up that broken mess you made on the floor. I have a feeling I will see you real soon.”

            With that, the older blonde smirked and walked off to continue his quest to look for Albus. Harry dressed up painfully and retrieved the shattered china onto the tray before taking it to the kitchen. Needless to say he was being yelled at by the Head Cook for smashing expensive china, but it paled to comparison with what Lucius did to him.

\--:--

            Albus watched as Harry went about doing his chores. He had noticed a bit of change in Harry’s demeanour the last few weeks and was curious as to what had happened. Little did he know that ever since the day Lucius had finally got his hands on Harry, he had been coming on a regular basis.

            First he would appear out of nowhere and dragged him to the nearest secluded corner he could find and shagged him like there was no tomorrow, often reminding him that he was a dirty, filthy whore that Severus would never want if he ever found out about this. Then, Lucius forced him to meet up every other day at the toilet where Moaning Myrtle lived, threatening to tell Severus their secret rendezvous if he did not cooperate. He would cast a Silencing Charm and another Invisibility Spell to keep away from prying eyes, even from Moaning Myrtle herself, and fuck Harry senseless, calling him dirty names, even the taboo word ‘Slut’ which would send the boy into pools of tears before the blonde reprimanded him for being a crybaby with his cane. Harry started off kicking and screaming and struggled whenever he could, but after a week of hearing threats and blackmails, he learnt to just try and suffer through this quietly.

            “Harry?” Albus asked, breaking the silence.

            Harry stopped working, looking over at him hesitantly before answering, “Yes?”

            “Are you alright? You look kinda pale.”

            “I…fine,” Harry replied, turning back to his chores.

            “Are you sure? You’ve out of sorts lately these few weeks. You seem…jumpy,” Albus probed a little out of sincere concern.

            “I fine,” Harry replied again, blinking away tears.

            Albus sighed. He knew something was wrong, but he didn’t know him enough to gain his trust to loosen his tongue and have a heart-to-heart talk with him. He got up his seat and patted Harry’s head, saying, “Alright, Harry. Maybe a little break from work would cheer you up. Since it’s the weekend and you don’t have lessons tonight, why don’t you go to the Potions Lab and see if you can help Severus clean up some stuff, OK?”

            Harry nodded, feeling excited, but scared. He knew it was his hint to say that he might feel better if he saw Severus, and he was sure his master would want to have sex after this few weeks of abstinence on the older man’s part, but he doubt want to. He doubt if he could.

            “It’s alright, Harry. I’ll vouch for you tonight. Off with you now.”

            Harry nodded and left the office. Cautiously he walked out and down the halls, looked everywhere to make sure Lucius didn’t come up on him. Sure that Lucius was not around, he made his way to the dungeons, knocking on Severus’ office door. Severus was inside the lab making notes in his journal about a curing potion when he heard the knock.

            “Come in,” he said, still stirring and jotting down on his journal.

            Harry opened the door and peeked in. The side door that connected the office and the lab was open, so he knew where he could find him. He peered in to see Severus stirring away at his potion and went in hesitantly.

            “Hello, Master,” Harry said timidly, finally being able to pronounce ‘Master’ instead of just calling him ‘Mah’.

            “Hello there, love,” Severus smiled at the sight of him. Albus must be in his generous mood again to allow him to have him tonight. “I see you can talk more now.”

            “Yes,” Harry replied, smiling weakly.

            “Come here,” Severus said, opening his arm for a side hug, still stirring his potion.

            Harry just stood there, hesitating, not sure whether to go to him or not. Severus frowned. Usually he would not even have to ask; Harry would be in his arms the moment he was inside the room. He knew he was not behaving like himself the moment the boy hesitated at his words.

            “Harry…is something wrong?”

            “No,” Harry said, shaking his head.

            “Why won’t you hug me?”

            “I…” Harry shuddered a little as he couldn’t help imagining Lucius’ touches on him. They just had sex yesterday afternoon and his scent was still fresh in his mind, making him nauseous. “I…no feel well…”

            “Are you sick?” Severus asked worriedly.

            Harry shook his head again, then muttered as he turned to the door to leave, “I…go back Albus office now…”

            “Pet, has someone touched you?” Severus asked gravely, his voice low and lethal. “Has…Has Albus hurt you?”

            Harry spun round and shook his head hard, “Albus no hurt me. Albus good.”

            “But have you been touched?”

            Harry shook his head, trying to convince himself that yesterday afternoon’s sex did not happen; that Lucius never touched him, but his heart knew that it was far from the truth. _Damn the potions,_ Severus grumbled inwardly as he saw his potions boiling off the cauldron unattended. He turned the flames off and walked over to Harry, watching him and checking him from head to toe to see any tell-tale signs that his beloved pet had been tainted.

            “Why look me like dat, Master?” Harry asked, trying unconvincingly to look innocent.

            “Someone has touched you, Harry, I know it,” Severus said as he knelt down until he was Harry’s eye level. “Tell me, Harry. I just want to know who has hurt you.”

            “No one,” Harry replied hesitantly, wanting to back away from him.

            “Are you lying to me? I know something is wrong. You would be in my arms the moment the door closed and right now you look like you want to be anywhere but here.”

            “I no like you angry, Master…”

            “Then tell me the truth.”

            “I…” Harry wanted to say it so badly, wanted his beloved master to rescue him, but was reminded of the words Lucius said to him. You tend to believe in something after hearing it so many times. He held back his confession. “I cannot.”

            “I am not angry at you, Harry. I just need to know,” Severus said as he cupped his cheek. He could feel Harry flinch for a split second there at his touch, which confirmed his suspicions even more about his pet being touched by someone other than him.

            “I cannot tell…You dun wan me if I tell…”

            “Why do you think that?”

            “He…said so…” Harry said, going as far as he could go to reveal his situation.

            “He…? So you _were_ raped,” Severus said, standing up, his heart seething and boiling with anger. He clenched his fists until his knuckles went white as he spoke through clenched teeth, “I am going to cut off his dick! I…I…I’m going to make him eat it!”

            “No! No! No!” Harry begged, grabbing his sleeves. “Please! No! Dun do it! Please!”

            “Who was it, Harry? Tell me!”

            Harry squeezed his eyes tight and shook his head hard. He’d do anything to protect his master, even from himself, and having Severus and Lucius go head to head and cause even more trouble for him was not what he wanted happen to his master right now.

            Severus sighed. Seeing that he was not going to receive any information from him, he stepped back, “Then go.”

            “W…What?” Harry was confused, his eyes tear-filled.

            “You can’t stand to be around me. It is better for you not to be around me for a while.”

            “Master…hate me…?” Harry whimpered.

            “No, I don’t. But if I am correct in what I think had happened to you, it is best for you to stay way. You will think of this man each time I get near you.”

            Harry was too upset to listen to reason. Severus telling him not to be around him was enough to let him know that Lucius’ conviction of Severus’ reaction towards the knowledge of him bedding someone else other than him was true.

            “You hate me! Master, you hate me!”

            “I don’t hate you, pet. I hate that you won’t tell me who hurt you. I hate the man that did hurt you. I hate Lucius for making me so helpless over your plight. I hate him for all this.”

            “You hate me! You hate me!” Harry screamed with his hands on his ears as he stormed out of the office, crying his eyes out. Severus wanted to give chase but he knew it wouldn’t do any good. Leaning against the door frame, he sighed before cursing under his breath and slamming his fist against the wall in frustration.

            Harry ran and ran until he couldn’t run anymore. When he finally caught his breath, he found himself near the forbidden bathroom where Moaning Myrtle lives…and where Lucius was waiting.

            “I’ve never seen someone so eager to rush to me. You had a bad day, boy?”

            Harry sobbed but did not want to look him in the eye. He didn’t care what reason he used to show up in Hogwarts all the time, but he knew that since he was here, he was bound to get a little sexual pounding for the day.

            “Well, let Master Lucius make it all better, shall we?” Lucius asked as he held out his hand.

            Harry took his hand and followed him mechanically. He didn’t care anymore what happens to him. All he knew was that his master no longer loved him.


	22. Chapter 22

            Severus marched to Albus’ office, his face looking angrier than usual. Today’s class was more upsetting than he used to make it, more so when he had last night’s incident in his mind. Even Draco noticed the difference in character as he was much snider and more cynical than he usually was. Lucius coming over to the school to do his weekly evaluation for the Ministry was not helping either, especially when they crossed paths and the blonde just flashed him one of the smuggest grin he had ever seen in a long while. Not even bother knocking, he opened the door and stormed in, giving a grudging look at the old man.

            “Albus!”

            “Ah, funny to see you here. I thought you were supposed to have classes 5 minutes later…”

            “Those dunderheads can wait,” Severus cut in. He landed both his hands on Albus’ desk and said gravely, “Albus, I think someone has raped my Harry.”

            “Goodness gracious me, really?” Albus asked in shock. “No wonder he… I…I’ve noticed that he’s been rather sickly pale and jumpy lately but Harry said he was fine, so I didn’t think it was wise to pressure the matter.”

            “Well, he is not fine. He wouldn’t even come near me! He didn’t actually tell me in many words about it, but I can tell from his body reactions that he was raped. He ran out of the room saying I hated him. Albus, I need to know who did this to him. He has to pay.”

            “Well…” Albus scratched his chin as he considered the suspects. “I can’t think of any possible people. I mean, the only people he was ever really close to besides me are Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley, but Mr. Weasley is engaged with Ms. Granger. He’s a good boy and the hetero kind. He would never betray Ms. Granger over Harry. And as far as I know, Harry mostly hangs around with the other servants in the castle, and sometimes the teachers when they needed his help. And also the Quidditch team when they need him to clean up. But none of them had ever given him any trouble, or else he would be shirking his chores instead of doing them like nothing happened. I’m sorry, Severus. I can’t think of anyone else.”

            “I can think of a dozen people, even that supposedly innocent-looking Weasley, but I have no proof to back it up. If Weasley wasn’t being his speech teacher and having Granger by his side, I wouldn’t even allow him to lay a finger on my pet, not even if he used a ten-foot pole. And what about the Head Cook I complained to you about recently? Harry told me he beat him once for burning the stew. He may be taking revenge against…”

            “Now, now, Severus. Let’s not jump into conclusions here. Let’s see. How shall we go about finding the perpetrator who tainted Harry?”

            “Could we give him veritaserum?” Severus suggested. “I know it is not to be used unless in front of a jury but it is worth a shot. I still have some kept in the lab.”

            “I suppose, but don’t you think it’s a little bit unethical? I mean using veritaserum on a child so young…” Albus was a little hesitant about the idea of having a 12-year-old ingesting truth serum without knowing the side-effects.

            “Please, Albus, I need to know.”

            Albus was a little moved. Severus was not known to beg. He had never asked for something so desperately throughout the years he had known him. He had always been very straightforward and forceful and usually badger or bully his way into getting what he wanted, but most of the time he kept himself to himself and wanted very little. To see him with those pair of sad, urgent eyes and to hear him say ‘Please’, he knew the boy had done more than just change the cold, cynical Ice King of Hogwarts.

            “Well…if I be the witness to his confession, it should be alright. I am the Headmaster of Hogwarts and a member of the Ministry, after all. You get the serum and I’ll try to get Harry in my quarters as soon as possible.”

            “Very well,” Severus sighed inwardly in relief. “Do you know where he is?”

            “I’m not sure. I haven’t seen him since he woke up and left the office to do his daily chores. I can ask Mr. Weasley to send him here after their speech lessons tonight.”

            “OK. I just…worry about him, is all,” Severus said as he prepared to leave. He stopped at the door for a moment before saying, “Albus, when we find out who it is I will kill that man.”

            “No, Severus,” Albus replied sternly. “You do not want to go to Azkaban for this. You will only hurt the boy.”

            “He will be in your care. I will never be able to have him in my hands again after what he had been through, you know this.”

            “You can’t say that for sure, but we’ll hear him out later tonight. You go…teach your classes.”

            Meanwhile, while all that discussion was going on, Harry had just done being fucked by Lucius for the day. Lucius had shown up for quite a while these days with the excuse that he was running errands and inspections for the Ministry, and sometimes under the pretense that he wished to monitor his son’s progress. As usual, their rendezvous spot was in Moaning Myrtle’s toilet, but this time, Harry did not put up a fight. He just allowed Lucius to have his way with him and endured the sex as long as Lucius could give it.

            “That was pretty good today, boy,” Lucius said as he helped Harry put his clothes back on before putting on his. “If only you were so obedient like this before, eh? See you soon.”

            Harry didn’t say a word. He just let Lucius finish dressing and cleaning him before he hobbled out of the bathroom, not giving the older blonde a second glance. Ron just so happened to be passing by after his Divination class and saw him coming out from the corner of the bathroom direction. Lucky for him, Lucius was still inside trying to straighten himself out. By the time he was done, Ron had led Harry far away from the haunted bathroom.

            “Har! What’re u doing there? You know you’re not allowed in Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. C’mon, lad, let’s get you something to eat, aye? We got you a new book to read today.”

            Harry nodded wordlessly. After the light snack (in which Harry didn’t eat much), Harry walked around moodlessly, going back to doing his chores mechanically. Everyone, even his non-human friends the ghosts, the portraits and paintings and Peeves, noticed the change in his demeanour but the boy was definitely not giving away anything. His changes were noticed even more by the Old Married Couple of Hogwarts Ron and Hermione.

            “Something looks really weird,” Ron said worriedly as he watched the poor boy going about his business while they were having dinner at the Great Hall later that night. “Harry’s not acting himself these few weeks, Mione. Do you notice it too?”

            “Hm?” Hermione looked up from her ‘Historical Events of the Magical Years’ book she borrowed from the library. “Oh yeah, I know. Yesterday I saw him limping when he was helping Madame Pince to collect books left on the table in the library to be sorted back to the shelves. I thought he just got his foot hurt but I feel that there could be something more happening than a hurt foot.”

            “Well, technically I did see him coming out of Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom this afternoon. I thought he got lost again or something. I asked him to have some snacks with me, but he didn’t eat much.”

            “Do you think…” Hermione wanted to voice out her suspicions but decided against it, shaking her head, “No, that can’t be.”

            “Can’t be?” Ron’s interest was perked. “Can’t be what?”

            “I think he might have been forced into…you know,” Hermione blushed as she tried to hint the redhead.

            “Huh?” Ron didn’t get it at first but the idea soon kicked in when he saw Hermione’s blush. “Oh…OH! But…But who could be such a sleazebag to hurt Har like that? He may be a slave, but he’s not _that_ kind of slave! When I get my hands on him, I’ll…”

            “Good evening, children.”

            The couple spun round to see Albus in his usual happy, knowing grin.

            “Oh, good evening, Headmaster,” Hermione greeted.

            “Kids, could you do me a favour and finish your session with Harry a little earlier tonight? I have been making a lot of notes these few days for the school’s upcoming events and I need him in the office to sort of clean up after me.”

            “Sure, we can end it a bit early, sir. We need to revise for our O.W.L anyway.”

            “Aye, sir. Anything for you and Harry,” Ron agreed. He hesitated for a moment before trying his luck, “Sir, is something wrong with Har?”

            “Oh, he’s just fine,” Albus smiled. “He’s probably having a little bit of the cold, nothing Madame Pomfrey can’t help. So, you will send him off early, eh?”

            “Yes, sir,” Hermione agreed, elbowing lightly at Ron to keep himself to himself.

            As Albus left to join the other professors for dinner, Ron’s mind began to formulate a plan.

\--:--

            Later after class, Harry was taken back to Albus’ office, where Albus and Severus were waiting.

            “Here’s the little tyke, Headmaster!” Ron announced. “Oh, hello, Prof. Snape.”

            “Ah, thank you very much, Mr. Weasley,” Albus replied. “We’ll take it from here.”

            Harry, at upon hearing Severus’ title being called, automatically doubled back, trying to leave the office, accidentally pulling Ron along with him.

            “Woah, woah, where you going, lad?”

            “That will be all, Weasley,” Severus said, his face looking stern just for Ron’s benefit. He quickly grabbed Harry’s arm and pulled him towards Albus to hold. Ron could’ve sworn he saw a glimpse of Harry’s pleading eyes to get out of here, but with the two professors waiting for him to leave, he couldn’t do anything.

            “Um, OK, well, see ya, lad.”

            With that Ron quickly made a dash out of the office, leaving Albus, Harry and Severus to their own devices. Severus accio-ed a chair for the boy to sit while Albus closed and locked the door. Harry stiffened himself instinctively at Severus’ touch when the older man ushered the boy to his seat.

            “Take a seat on the chair, Harry.”

            “It’s OK, Har. We’re here for you. Nothing is going to harm you, I promise.”

            Harry nodded, moving stiffly towards the chair and sat down. Severus walked over to the boy and knelt down to his eye level before fishing out something from his chest pocket. It was a little forest-green bottle filled with clear liquid.

            “Open your mouth for me.”

            Harry shook his head. Severus had made him drink sleeping potion before. Who knows what he had in mind for him this time?

            “It’s alright, Har. It’s just a little potion. It won’t hurt you.”

            “I dun wan,” Harry refused. There was no way they were going to make him open his mouth for that thing.

            “Please, love,” Severus said softly. Harry was taken aback. He had not heard Severus speak to him that softly before since the day they were separated. His dark orbs were glassy, as if he would pour out a long stream of tears in any given minute. Unconsciously, touched by that soft tone, Harry’s mouth opened by itself, allowing Severus to do as he pleased. Severus uncorked the bottle and put a few drops into his mouth, making him swallow. Soon, the boy felt a little woozy and his tongue rather loose. Albus, after examining his vitals, nodded and gave Severus the green light to interrogate him.

            “Who am I?” Severus asked as he took his hand.

            “Master,” Harry giggled as he brought Severus’ hand up to stroke it against his cheek.

            “And who is he?” he asked, pointing at Albus.

            “That’s Grandpa Albus,” the boy giggled again.

            “He calls me that sometimes,” Albus chuckled good-naturedly.

            Severus nodded and continued, “Harry, why do you look so pale lately?”

            “I just so tired…” Harry sighed.

            “Why are you tired?”

            “I tired because work…because Draco daddy come see me all the time…”

            “Lucius?” Severus was surprised at that answer. “Why does he come to see you?”

            “He wanna fuck me,” Harry replied in a matter-of-fact way, shocking both the adults present.

            “Good lord,” Albus exclaimed, slapping his forehead. “Come to think of it, he has been showing up lately, saying he wants to monitor his son’s progress or participate in a meeting or doing his weekly evaluation for the Ministry and such…Oh good lord of Merlin, why didn’t I think of him…”

            Severus stayed quiet for a full long minute, trying to digest all this in. Then he stood up, his face screaming bloody murder.

            “I am going to kill him.”

            “Severus, remember what I said,” Albus reminded him about their conversation this morning.

            “It’s OK, Master,” Harry muttered like a drunken person. “I kin take it.”

            “No, you will not,” Severus scolded, then turned back to Albus and growled, “Albus, I cannot sit by and let his rape my pet. I will not!”

            “Draco daddy say is pay back. I bite him. I pay. Master no go. Harry love Master. Harry do anything for Master…” Harry babbled like someone who had just downed an entire bottle or two of booze before he finally felt the drowsy effects of the veritaserum and collapsed from the chair into slumber. Luckily, Albus was nearby to catch him before he hit his face on the stone floor.

            “That bastard will pay,” Severus said, sickened by the thought of his god-brother raping his beloved and Harry having to take all the burden for him.

            “Yes, he does,” Albus agreed as he picked Harry up and cradled the sleeping boy in his arms, “but we cannot go about this by you storming to his house and crucifying him or blowing his balls off. It’s a slave’s word against him. Besides, you know the public property factor, and you don’t exactly own Harry anymore. I do, and I have no choice but to abide by the factor, whether I like it or not.”

            “Then what? I sit back and let him get raped? I would rather be sent to Azkaban than let that happen!”

            “And then what would you do? Let Harry suffer the consequences for your actions while you rot in prison and I having to step back and watch him be taken by other men because I cannot contest against the public property factor?” Albus challenged, waiting for Severus to retaliate before turning away from him as he brought Harry to his room to sleep, Severus following behind him. “There will always be a way to go around it. Maybe not now, maybe not tomorrow, but I’ll try to figure out some way. You know as much as I do that I’m tied in this situation here.”

            “But for the time being he can do to Harry whatever he pleases?” Severus asked bitterly as he watched Albus tucking Harry in.

            “I will try to keep Harry away from Lucius as much as possible. I will keep him by my side at all times from now on, but whatever that happens beyond my control, I…I can only apologize in advance.”

            Severus, seeing that there was no point in prolonging the argument, turned and stormed out of the office, leaving the old man sighing as he closed the door to Harry’s room and went back to his desk to finish whatever he had left off of his work.

            “That child really had it tough, Fawkes my old friend,” Albus muttered to his phoenix perched loyally beside him, “I can see now why Severus loves him so much.”

\--:--

            “Bloody hell, Mione! I just heard the craziest thing!”

            Ron was practically hyped up as he made a mad dash back to the common room and managed to catch up with Hermione who was still staying up finishing the homework that Ron had not even started. Apparently Ron was suspicious at the sudden tense atmosphere that was going in Albus’ office and that plea look Harry gave him aroused his curiosity too much that he had to find out what was going on. Using the Magic Portable Ear his twin brothers Fred and George gave him for his birthday and forced him to carry it around so that he could help them eavesdrop on exam answers, he managed to catch everything that was going inside the office and discover the secret relationship between Severus and Harry. It was too good a story to pass. As he made Hermione pay attention to him, he was secretly grateful that his twin brothers made him carry the Ear around.

            “What now, Ron? I’m very busy, and so should you! You know our assignments due date is less than two days away!”

            “Well, you see…” Ron told what he had heard in the office from start to finish. Once he was done, he had left the ever nonchalant Hermione bug-eyed and slack-jawed. “So I think that’s the reason why Prof. Snape was so down a few months ago and why Har’s been acting weird lately.”

            “It can’t be,” Hermione breathed in disbelief. “I never thought Prof. Snape was…well, kind.”

            “Neither did I. But I believe he’s what you call a man of…a million faces,” Ron was being sarcastic when he said the last part.

            “True,” Hermione grinned at Ron’s sarcasm, “Poor Harry. I can’t believe that happened.”

            “What are we gonna do? I mean, we can’t just simply let Harry get…molested by that scumbag! It’s bad enough as it is that his spawn is tormenting us in school, now Count Pretty Boy here is tormenting our friend!”

            “True, true. But Harry is a slave, and if you’re right about him being a sex slave, then the public property factor still applies. Technically, according to the old laws that are still ingrained within the books of Human Labour Rights Act, anyone else besides the original master has the right to do whatever they please with a slave and the master are required to either participate with their activities or not to interfere them while they have their way with the slave. Minimal resistance from either master or slave is allowed, but only just, because no matter how much the original master does not want his slave to used by anyone else, he has to respect the rights of other masters who desire pleasure just as much as he does. It’s a lose-lose situation in this case, Ron. My guess is that probably Prof. Snape and/or Harry breached the old law and ended up in this predicament.”

            “How do you know so much about slavery, Mione?” Ron raised an eyebrow in confusion.

            “Unlike you, Ron, I actually read. I’ve been seeing some of the higher-ups having slaves of their own and Percy, seeing that I was interested as to why slaves still exist in the modern world, gave me a copy of the Human Labour Rights Act to look through. Quite fascinating stuff, don’t you think?”

            “Well, yeah, but anyways, this is Harry we’re talking about here! Our student! Our friend! And that Count Von I’m-So-Full-Of-Myself-Because-I’m-Rich-and-Powerful is making a whore outta him! We must do something!”

            “Well, the only thing that comes to my mind is adoption. Prof. Dumbledore would have to release Harry from slavery and then adopt him. But I’m not sure it would work…”

            “You’re right!” Ron exclaimed, snapping his fingers. “Of course it would work! If Prof. Dumbledore adopts Har, then that bloody ‘Don’t Hate Me Coz I’m Beautiful’ idiot cannot do anything to him without committing pedophile! That’s great! We should tell this to Prof. Dumbledore right away!”

            “But you listened in on them, remember?” Hermione reminded her fiancé about his eavesdropping. “They will know. And I don’t think they take too kindly on them having someone else knowing their well-kept secrets.”

            “Hmm, true. So how do we bring about it without actually letting them know that I ‘spied with my little ear’ on them?”

            “We could try sending a note.”

            “Send a note? Mione, they are our professors, filled with experience of reading handwritings and spotting whose handwriting belongs to whom. They’d probably recognize our handwriting as soon as they open the letter. We can’t pull this off. Besides, what should we write in it? ‘Hi, I just so happen to know that Lucius Malfoy has been raping your slave and I have an idea on how to solve it but I can’t tell you who I am coz you might just suspend me for spying?’” Ron snorted at that last remark. “That’s definitely gonna work.”

            “Well, not worded like that, no,” Hermione glared at him, folding her arms against her chest. She rolled her eyes in dismay; her fiancé can be very wordy and creative in his speech whenever he panics or becomes pessimistic. If only he were that good in words when he was doing his assignments. “It is the wording on its own. Besides, there’s gotta be hundreds of us student in Hogwarts and I doubt Prof. Dumbledore, no matter how wise, can figure whose handwriting belongs to whom. If it makes you feel any better, I know a spell that can alter my handwriting to look like it’s mine, but it’s not mine at the same time. Happy?”

            “Alright then,” Ron sighed, a little breathless after spouting out so much nonsense. “You write the note. You’re better at sensible writing than I am. I’ll loan you Pig to send it to him.”

            “Good,” Hermione nodded and reached down into her bag to see if she had any scrap parchment left. Finding one, she thought for a while before starting to write. Ron peered over her shoulder to see what she was writing. Slowly he wrapped his arms around her shoulder as he continued watching while she wrote the words in a way that is got the point across without the who, what and where this letter came from. One thing she would never admit, not even to his fiancé, was that she secretly enjoyed the feeling of Ron’s arms around her while she did her things on the desk. She may pretend to shove him off with the excuse that he was bothering her, but after once or twice, she allowed him to stay that way. Ron may not know it himself, but years of feeling Ron’s arms wrapped so securely with his soft heartbeat thumping quietly near her ear told her that Ron was actually quite muscular and toned in his own way. Being in his arms made her feel safe, and as she finished her last sentences, she secretly wished that this sort of feeling would never change nor end between them.

            Seeing that Hermione had done her letter after she cast the spell to alter her handwriting, he prepared the envelope for her, taken from the few stack of new envelopes he bought when he owled his mother for the teaching materials for Harry, “Here. Put it in and I’ll take it to Pig to give it to Prof. Dumbledore.”

            “OK,” Hermione accepted the envelope and put the letter in. Sealing it with envelope wax, she handed it to Ron, who in turn rushed quickly to the room where they kept their owls. Dozens upon dozens of those nocturnal birds were fluttering about from one perch to another. Some actually flew out of the room, probably to go hunting for the night, but most of them were comfortable in their own perch, hooting their music of the night.

            “Here, Pig,” Ron called. The old bird flew off its perch and swooped down towards the redhead, only to slam into his face, making the poor redhead topple down, lying flat on his back. “Ow! Pig! You bloody old coot! One of these days I will cook you for Thanksgiving!” Ron scolded as he passed the letter to the owl, “Now send this to Prof. Dumbledore's office, and don’t drop it or slam into anything, OK?”

            As he sent the owl off, he hoped that their plan would work in helping out their dear friend.


	23. Chapter 23

            “Severus? Severus Snape?”

            Albus made a fire-call first thing in the early morning dawn. He had just finished the last of his paperwork and was about to retire when Pig flew in and landed headlong onto the table. As expected, it scared the socks out of Fawkes and startled the sleep out of the old man, but he soon calmed down when he saw that the owl was carrying a letter for him. The envelope was sealed with wax but there was no crest on it to indicate who it came to, and when he opened the letter and read it, there was something familiar about the handwriting but he couldn’t seem to pinpoint whose it belong to. At first he suspected the handwriting altering spell, but when he read the content of the letter, all that was not important.

            “Yes?” Severus poked through grumpily. He had spent the whole sleepless night pacing to and fro the office trying to figure out how to get his little pet back and from harm’s way and he wasn’t really in a good mood at the moment.

            “Come to my office for a while. There is something important we need to discuss.”

            “Alright. I’ll be right there,” Severus sighed. Moments later, he was up in the office. “What is it, Albus? I’m not in a mood for petty discussions at the moment.”

            “I doubt you find this petty,” Albus said as he handed the letter to Severus. Severus took it and read it, which said:

* * *

 

_Dear Sir,_

_It has come to my attention that the slave in your care has been mistreated by another. We, as concerned citizens, cannot stand by and watch such injustice be done, even to a slave._

_We would like to suggest a plan, if you are willing to partake in it. You could release him from slavery and adopt him as your son. That way he would not be able to be harmed._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Concerned Citizens_

* * *

 

            “It is a strange notion, but it seemed like a good idea,” Albus commented on the letter content. “I wonder who sent this though.”

            “Do you really think this could work?” Severus asked. The handwriting may seem different, but experience taught the professor that the writing style and the nature of the tone could possibly indicate it belonged to Hermione, since he had her as his students for 5 years now and seen her work. But then again, he could be wrong.

            “Most possible. Not by a long shot, since there have to be a lot of legalities to face, but overall I think it could work.”

            “But there have never been any cases of slaves being freed ever since they started the slavery business. Even my previous slaves, when I find no use of them, were returned back to the business, and I never knew what happens to them after that. No one has ever _heard_ of freeing a slave before, let alone adopt one.”

            “Well, anything is worth a shot at this point. Maybe we may be the first to do so. That is, if you do not mind me adopting Harry, of course.”

            “I would trust no one else to look after my pet, and I have always viewed you as family. But what does that mean about me and Harry?”

            “I’m not sure, I’m afraid. I suppose your status would be just ex-master and ex-slave. If he were to be freed from slavery, whatever he had done with you in the past may probably be considered null, as if he had never been your slave at all, but whatever you or others may try to do might be considered pedophile by law. I might officially be his adopted grandfather, of course, and his status as my grandson would probably protect him from any attempts of pursuit by others, but I’m not sure what that leads you.”

            “So I would not be allowed to be with him at all?”

            “I wouldn’t say that. You have my full consent as to dating Harry like a normal couple should, but Harry _is_ below the mature age to date. I can make it as a pretense that you’re babysitting Harry for me, but judging by your past history with the boy, I suggest you do your ‘private’ things...well, privately.”

            “I have never done anything with him in the public eye. I give my word that it will be private and secretive.”

            “Good. Then we will wait until the semester break is up for the O.W.L. students’ revision benefits. You will take me to the person dealing with the slave trade business so that we could talk matters with the manager.”

            “Why me? I am nothing to Harry now, in the public eye.”

            “Well, technically you were the one who bought Harry and that you putting him under my care was a punishment sentence. Even though you passed ownership to me, unless you actually write up and sign an official business contract stating I am Harry’s master, they probably still state that you as the buyer in the business records, so probably they’d rather do dealings with you than with me.”

            “Very well then, I will go. How do we explain this to Harry? All he has known is Masters and Slaves.”

            “I doubt he’ll be able to handle it if it came from me. But for you, you’ll know when that happens. You’ve survived many trials in your life; you will get through this one. Harry is a smart boy and he trusts you more. He’ll understand if you tell him.”

            “I hope so. I don’t want him to think that he is not wanted nor needed any more.”

            “He won’t. He loves you very, very much. Remember that.”

            Severus nodded, then asked, “When should I speak to him?”

            “It’s best if you speak to him before,” Albus scanned through the calendar before continuing, “the semester break. Who knows the business would require him to sign some papers to be released. I suggest you consult someone who knows the ins and outs of the business and how the procedure goes first before talking to him. You do know someone, don’t you?”

            “Not really,” Severus shrugged, “but I can find out.”

            “Well, you can always ask a fellow slave. Who else close to you owns a slave from the business?”

            “Draco does,” Severus replied, remembering the half-werewolf he had spoken to when Harry was still in his care, “but it was a gift from his father and I refuse to talk to that man.”

            “Well no one said anything about talking to Lucius,” Albus gave him a knowing grin, trying to hint him on something. When Severus raised an eyebrow, seemingly not getting the picture, he hinted again, “Draco is your student, is he not?”

            “Yes, he is,” Severus said casually, then quickly got the hint. “You mean I should talk to him?”

            Albus nodded in reply. Severus smiled slightly before making his way to his next class.

            For the first time since he started working in Hogwarts, he was actually looking forward to teaching today.

\--:--

            Draco stayed back after Potions Class was over, waiting for everyone to leave except him and Severus. During class, Draco had noticed that his godfather cast him quick glances every other minute. It may not be noticeable to others, but it was a bond both Draco and Severus shared after years of being a part of a family, and that body language was a signal for him that his godfather wished to talk to something with him in private.

            As soon as they were alone (and after dismissing his goons), Draco came up to Severus’ desk.

            “You wanted to see me, Uncle Sev?”

            “Yes, Draco,” Severus nodded. “I need to ask you for a favour.”

            “Anything, Uncle Sev,” Draco replied eagerly. “Anything to make me feel better about your…well, situation.”

            “I need to you to talk to Remus about the slave business. I need to know how the procedure for freeing a slave goes.”

            Draco widened his eyes in shock, “You…You mean you want to free Harry from slavery?”

            “Yes,” Severus nodded.

            “But…But no one has ever freed a slave before! Not even Father has! Whenever he got tired of a sex slave he would just make calls to the business to take them away or personally send the slave back to the manager to hand-pick another one or wait for another invite to one of their auctions! No one in history has ever done this before.”

            “It is the least I can do to keep Harry from any other prying hands since I have lost him to Dumbledore. Besides Harry deserves it. There is no other way.”

            “Well, alright,” Draco replied, seeing that his godfather had already made up his mind. “I’ll talk to him once I get home. I’ll tell you as soon as I know everything.”

            “Thank you, Draco. I appreciate it.”

            “Anything for the favourite family member,” Draco said, smiling warmly.

            Thus, by the end of the day, the young blonde quickly made it back home to relay the questions to his beloved slave. After dumping his bag and robes in his room, he went to find the half-werewolf. He soon found him at the stables helping the stable boy to tend to the horses. Remus, at upon seeing him, flashed him a welcoming smile.

            “Welcome home, Young Master.”

            “Remus, I need to talk to you, right now.”

            “OK,” Remus replied, rather surprised at the urgency in Draco’s tone of voice. He excused himself from the stables and came to him. Draco took his hand and walked him back to the room. Once they were inside, Remus quickly knelt at Draco’s eye level and asked, “Are you alright, Drake?”

            “I’m fine. I want to ask you about the business.”

            “What about it?” Remus, relieved that it was not something of life and death, got up to help Draco pick up the bag and the robes he dumped carelessly on the floor.

            “How would you go about getting a slave freed? Do you know about it?”

            Remus hesitated in his tracks for a moment and said in a low, dour tone, “You don’t wanna free me.”

            “Well, I wasn’t talking about you, really, although the thought of freeing you comes in mind once in a while. I was talking about Harry. Uncle Sev wants to free him, and he asked me to ask you about the procedures.”

            “You don’t wanna have Master Snape free him either, seriously,” Remus’ tone continued to be low and dour, not looking directly at his Young Master.

            “Why?” Draco asked, feeling rather odd at Remus’ sudden change of mood.

            “The business won’t just ‘free’ someone. They have a policy that every slave is a bread winner. If they were gonna give away their prized bread winner, they would have to make it hard for the masters to do so. Why do you think those slaves are still there even though the master can afford to free them with all the money they have?”

            “But Harry needs it, Remy,” Draco shrugged, not sure why his love was making a fuss about such a trivial manner. “Uncle Sev wants to make sure that Harry would never be touched by anyone else again. It’s for Harry’s own good.”

            “I know, but trust me, when I tell you about how they go about this business, Master Snape would think twice about freeing Harry.”

            “Why?”

            “Because usually when a master wants to free a slave, they won’t just accept money. They can get that through normal auctions. And besides, they know their clients are damn rich enough to afford monetary means to free a slave. No, they would set a price even higher than money. Something much, much more valuable and many have backed away as soon as they named their terms.”

            “Stop beating around the bush, Remus Lupin.”

            “Well, they would ask the masters to pay them in rare items, like a dragon’s egg or some sort of forbidden items or collectibles only sold in the black market. But they don’t want it bought from some cheap place. They know they have the money for it. They want it freshly taken from the source first-hand and delivered in person. So let's say they want a lock of a Scottish giantess’ hair to free Harry, Master Snape has to really get one from the giantess personally.”

            “Oh…well…” Draco scratched his chin nervously. “That does sound not only hard but extremely dangerous.”

            “That’s right. And that’s not all. Even if some of those daredevils who actually manage to meet their terms, they will make some sort of excuse to delay delivering the freed slave to them, sometimes even kill the slave and made it like they died of natural causes or suicide. Even if they had no excuses not to free the slave, they will find some loophole or some sort of technicality that will force the master to return the slave back to them, and that everything they had done regarding the freeing procedure would be either covered up from the public eye or never mentioned at all, and the sad failure tales the masters tell to their friends would discourage others to even think of attempting to free their slaves. That’s the reason why masters now are just willing to buy, use them until they get bored and return them back to the business to retrieve their deposits and the slave will be sold to another master.

            “I have seen a few cases where my fellow colleagues were in high hopes being freed by their kind masters—which are very rare—only to be disappointed because of either them backing away as soon as they hear the terms given by the manager or died trying to get the things the manager wants or being torn apart from their masters and their freedom by the loopholes the manager managed to dig up. It’s a terrible cycle we have to go through. Why do you think none of those slaves were ever free and never once have you heard a master’s triumphant effort to free a slave or a slave’s touching story of being freed by a compassionate master?”

            “I…I didn’t know…I’m so sorry…” Draco felt his heart clenched at the thought of all those slaves bearing happy, blissful faces thinking that they would finally be free from the clutches of sex-selling and slavery, then forced to be slapped hard on the face, waking up with the dire reality of the situation.

            “Although I suppose that even if you tell this to Master Snape, he would never budge from it. I can tell from the way he met Harry’s every whim and fancy,” Remus smiled wryly, with Draco nodding in agreement. “You think Master Snape would take up the challenge?”

            “I think Uncle Sev would do anything for Harry. If Harry were to fall into the pits of Hell, he would jump after him to save him. That’s how much he loves the little tyke.”

            “I’m sure he will, but I just fear for his life. He’s too willing to throw it away for Har. Har would be the one left off hurting.”

            “True, but maybe it wouldn’t happen that way. Even if our Divination teacher Prof. Trelawney predicts a million possibilities of bloodshed, we may never exactly know what the future holds.”

            “I hope so.”

            “So then I would have to go through all that to free you?”

            “Pretty much that,” Remus replied, then put his hands on Draco’s shoulders and continued sternly, “But I won’t let you do that. I can’t let you risk your life for me. It’s not worth it. I’m fine as it is right here.”

            “But if you were free, you would never have to do what anyone told you to do.”

            “True, but it would mean you will no longer be my master. I am my own person. I live to serve you. Who will I go to when I’m free? Who will look after you then?”

            “We could still be together, just different,” Draco said in a matter-of-fact way.

            “I’m not sure I could get used to it though…I live to serve…” Remus was still hesitant about the idea of being free. After all, he had been trained to obey and serve since he was a child.

            “I just don’t want you to be public property,” Draco pouted, gripping Remus’ sleeve possessively. “I want you to be all mine.”

            Remus smiled at Draco’s pouty look and reached over to hug him, “I know, Drake, I know. But even if you manage to free me, I doubt Master would allow us to be together. He still views me as a low-life, and having his son dating an ex-slave—a half werewolf for the matter of the fact—is definitely not his cup of tea.”

            “Father can just fuck off. I don’t care about him. He…hasn’t ordered you into his bed, has he?”

            “Of course not. I steer clear away from him. Besides, I heard Master Sirius Black is giving away his slave and your father is willing to buy it off him.”

            “Good,” Draco smiled in relief and hugged him even tighter, remembering that Sirius had a habit of keeping numerous slaves, both male and female, to satiate him and his family’s impossible sex drive. “You are all mine.”

            “I belong only to you, Drake. I promise you.”

            “Show me.”

            “Eh?” Remus was caught by surprise at that request.

            “Show me whom you belong to,” the boy whispered seductively.

            Remus blushed a little. Trust a teenager to have such raging libido even though he was close to exams. Probably it could do him some good to entertain that libido of his; the boy had been rather stressed out these days, since Master Malfoy pressuring him to ace in O.W.L. forced him to remain abstinent for a considerable number of weeks. During the first few days of the first week of abstinence, Remus was made to sleep on the floor so as not to let his Young Master fall into temptation, and then the latter days of those weeks, the boy decided to completely keep himself from succumbing into mad, hot passionate bedding by bunking in at the Slytherin dorm on a vacant bed studying his head off until today when Severus asked him to go home to ask Remus what he wanted to know. Judging by the tone of the whisper, if Draco had any self-control left, he would only be too willing to throw it out of the window and jump on him there and then. He knew just what to do to relieve the stress, preferably the one between the boy’s legs.

            “Your wish is my command, Young Master.”

            With that, Remus began to doing a little strip tease for Draco, while the boy smiled and sat on the bed to watch the show. The half-werewolf slowly removed his top, unbuttoning his shirt one by one while gazing seductively at Draco, his hands occasionally reach down to run his hand along his own groin erotically to arouse his Young Master. Draco grabbed a random palm-sized plushie and threw it at the offending hand.

            “I didn’t say you could touch yourself, wolf.”

            Remus chuckled and pulled away, not the least bit offended by Draco calling him ‘wolf’. Normally he would be a little upset whenever anyone called him that name, reminding him of his damned lineage, but unlike the hired help who called him out of spite, the way Draco called him that was endearing and gentle, like a master would to a dear pet, thus he allowed only his Young Master to call him that while flashing a wild canine glare at anyone else who called him that. He slowly found himself undoing the buttons of his pants and taking them off smoothly as he danced erotically, slowly swaying his hips left and right as he ran his hands all over his own body, while the young boy bit his lips and moved his hand over his tented pants, slowly rubbing his reacting arousal as he watched this exotic display. The older man then moved deliberately slow to remove his underwear, his seductive gaze never leaving Draco’s eyes as his usual light-brown orbs glowed a magnificent golden, releasing its feral aura.

            “Fuck…” Draco breathed, his hand pressing more against his crotch and his heart pounding at the unadulterated and untamed wildness that was setting off jolts of pleasure within his young body.

            Remus finally took off everything, but turned his back and continues his seductive dance, not wanting to show him his manhood on purpose. Draco growled in frustration at the denied view and pulled himself out of his pants, stroking slowly as Remus continued not to face him, still dancing away and swaying his well-toned ass at him erotically. Finally Draco had enough stimulation and arousal from the half werewolf. The testosterone between his legs were begging for release.

            “Remy, get over here,” Draco barked his order. Remus turned his head to smile naughtily at Draco, not stopping his administration of eroticism.

            “Make me.”

            Draco stood up and stomped towards Remus, grabbing a handful of the half werewolf’s hair at the nape to turn him around, crushing their lips together. Remus kissed him back just as hungrily, fighting for tongue-dominance in which he lost soon enough. Draco reached up to pinch a nipple, rubbing it between his fingers until it was a hard nub, making the older man’s breath hitch at the feeling but not stopping him from kissing. Finally, Draco broke off, leaving a string of saliva between them and backed away a little.

            “Down on your knees.”

            “Yes, Young Master,” Remus said as he did as he was told.

            “Suck me.”

            Remus obeyed, sucking lightly at the head of the cock, his tongue occasionally playing with the slit.

            “I said _suck_ not _tease_ ,” Draco growled, a little frustrated that his wolf was bent on playing torture games with him.

            Remus grinned and started sucking long and hard onto Draco’s cock, bobbing in and out as he clench and unclench his lips over the length lightly. The boy moaned, his legs going wobbly.

            “So good, wolf.”

            Remus then dived in and deep-throated him, his head of the cock banging against the back of his throat. Draco moaned even louder as he could feel the sensitive tip of his shaft hitting against the smooth flesh behind amidst the lovely wet warmth.

            “Mmm, I want to come down your throat. Can I…?”

            Remus muffled in agreement, the vibration of his voice sending chilling spines up and down the boy’s spine as he continued to deep-throat him. Draco soon started to thrust his hips into Remus’ mouth. Glad that he lacked the gag reflex after years of training, Remus continued to suck and lick him while Draco fucked his mouth.

            “I’m coming, Remus…” Draco moaned, the pit of his stomach giving off the familiar tightening. “Oh…Oh…OH GODS…!!!”

            At Draco’s yell of completion, he came, thrusting deep into Remus’ mouth, some of his cum showering directly down his throat. Remus swallowed every drop, holding Draco’s hips in place, sucking harder to milk out any of them left. Draco was shaking, his legs giving out on him and would’ve collapsed to the carpeted floor if it weren’t for Remus’ stronghold on his hips. After taking everything in, Remus pulled out with a pop and put Draco back onto the bed.

            “Well, that went pretty well,” Remus said as he wiped off any drool or excess cum from his mouth and licked his hand clean.

            “I didn’t hurt you, did I? I was a bit rough.” Draco asked timidly, feeling ashamed about what he had just did out of the blue, now that his head was clearing.

            “No, no, no. I’m fine with it,” Remus assured him as he kissed his forehead. “I’ve been through worse. You are still as gentle as you’ve always been.”

            “I was too forceful,” Draco insisted, covering his face with his hands. “I know I was.”

            “You were fine, Drake. I like this aggressive side of you. In fact, I think ‘he’ likes it too,” Remus replied as he removed the boy’s hands from his face and pointed at his still hard cock.

            “Do you…want me to…?” Draco saw the size of the length and blushed.

            “If you want to,” Remus replied with a grin, “or you want me to do something else with it?”

            “I suppose you have earned it,” Draco smiled as he reached over, stroking him lightly before rolling over, sticking his still clothed bum out.

            “You sure you want this? I’m not doing it unless you want it as well.”

            “Oh, I want it, Remy. I need it. You have no idea how it feels to masturbate and fuck yourself with your finger alone in a dark dorm with tons of snoring people around you and only a Silencing Charm around your canopy bed to protect you from possible voyeurism.”

            “Alright. You asked for it, thus you shall receive it,” Remus chuckled as he started removing Draco’s pants, keeping his shirt on, tracing his tongue along the butt-cheek.

            “You tease too much,” Draco gasped at the feeling of Remus’ warm and wet tongue along his ass.

            “It’s nice to see your reaction when I do that,” Remus grinned as he prepared him by licking his hole and tongue-fucking him.

            “Fuck…!” Draco groaned, gripping the sheets tight.

            Taking off the rest of Draco’s clothes, the half-werewolf stuck his tongue all the way in, wriggling against the muscles within. Draco twitched and whined in protest, the familiar feeling in the pit of his stomach starting to crawl all the way down to his newly awakened erection.

            “Enough, Remy,” Draco begged. “At this rate, I will come before you.”

            Remus wiped the drool off his mouth as he released his oral hold on Draco and quickly thrust into the wet hole with one swift entry, earning a loud approval from the boy whose head fell forward in ecstasy. He started slamming into him, his hips slapping against Draco’s ass loudly, echoing throughout the room.

            “Yes, harder, Remus, harder…!” Draco moaned, gripping the sheets tighter to keep from flying forward.

            Remus hit him even harder, holding onto Draco’s hips tightly and pushes him in and out his cock aligned with his thrusts. Draco couldn’t help but slide up the bed slightly as Remus found the prostate after a few shifts in angles and assaulted with his borrowed superhuman strength, making sure that he did not use too much lest he would turn without warning. Hearing his Young Master begging for more, Remus turned Draco around until the boy was lying on his back and pushes his hips higher just the way he liked it. He piston in and out with his superhuman strength and rammed into him, literally bashing his cock against the boy’s prostate, letting out beast-like groans in the process.

            “Yes! Yes! Yes!” Draco reached to stroke his cock hard, doubling the pleasure both front and back as he was ravished through and through by the half-werewolf.

            “I’m…I’m going to come soon…” Remus groaned, his voice sounding almost like a wolf.

            “Yes…Yes, anything you want…!”

            “Fuck…Fuck…FUCK…!!!” Remus kept thrusting until he released everything he’s got into Draco. Seeing that Draco was still stroking himself, Remus wrapped his hand around his to help him out while he tried to settle down his own orgasmic tremors. A moment later, Draco came as well, string upon string of white liquid squirting all over both of them. After arching his back impossibly high to ride out the tremors, the boy fell back onto the bed, panting with his eyes closed. Remus pulled out and laid beside Draco, panting as well.

            “Sorry I came first, Drake…”

            “I…” Draco was still breathless. “I don’t blame you…It’s been so long…At least I…came twice…”

            “It has been a while since you came that much,” Remus grinned, then reached over to clean them up with Draco’s discarded clothes before pulling the covers over him and kissing his forehead, “Now take a nap. I’ll wake you when dinner’s ready. I take it you won’t be going back to your school dorm tonight?”

            Draco glared at him, hating to be told what to do. But truthfully he did need his rest. It had been so long since he actually slept on his lovely satin sheets in his own covers in the nude and in his own personal environment. The smell of moth balls, dust bunnies and old wood was not good for his health, even though they say that it was the best school bed a Slytherin could ever have. There was no way he was going back to that dingy old dorm tonight after experiencing the time of his life with his wonderful lover. Nodding as reply, he lay back down and closed his eyes, slowly but surely succumbing to the drowsy effects of the afterglow.

            As Remus dressed himself in new clean clothes and picked up their soiled ones to be washed, he sighed inwardly at the thought of Harry having to possibly go through what his previous colleagues did in their eternal hope of spreading their wings into the vast world of a possible bright future, only to be crushed and torn off the wings into a bloody mess on the floor filled with despair and devastation.

            “Master Snape, I do hope you know what you’re doing.”


	24. Chapter 24

            As reluctant as Draco was to wake up for school, he had to. As soon as he heard Remus’ soft wake up call near his ear, his young and healthy body immediately went into shagging mode, and by the time he was done—along with cleaning up and having a very rushed breakfast before jumping into the family carriage to go to school—he was already one hour late for his first class, but nevertheless he came to school pretty refreshed. Besides, no one really missed him anyway when he was gone, except the nymphomaniac Pansy Parkinson (who is now letting herself get fucked by everyone else except Draco to get over the fact that she was dumped for a sex slave) and his goons. This goes to show how many times Draco had skipped classes and had gotten away with it. Of course, he was on time for Severus’ Potions Class.

            He had news to relay to him anyway.

            After Potions Class, he stayed back, waiting for everyone to leave while Severus stacked the papers the he would grade later. He waited for quite a while for the Potions Master to notice him before he finally looked up to see him still there sitting with that expectant look on his face.

            “Yes, Mr. Malfoy, can I help you?”

            Draco looked around to see if everyone was gone and came up to him, “I got what you needed.”

            “Do tell,” Severus said, sat up straighter.

            Draco told everything he had heard from Remus, including the price to pay for a slave’s freedom. By the time he was finished, Severus looked thoughtful.

            “He is right; it is dangerous.”

            “Are you sure you wanna go through this? If anything happens to you, Harry would be mortified. He may never recover from this.”

            “He will. He is young. He will find someone to love him if and when I am gone.”

            “No, Uncle Sev, I will not allow it! Harry has been through enough hell! He seemed so happy now that he’s with you. Remy said he had never seen him smile until now. You put him through that kind of loss again and I swear I’ll...I’ll hate you for the rest of my life!”

            “I could be dead by the time you start hating me. But Draco, he is not happy. You may not know this, but I’m going to tell you something that does not go out of this room.”

            “Alright,” Draco said as he crossed his arms against his chest. “Tell me.”

            “Your father has been coming to the school more and more. Just the other day, I found out from Harry with a little talking into that your father has been coming to Harry.”

            “What…?” Draco widened his eyes in disbelief. He backed away and shook his head. “I…I don’t believe you. He’s just…concerned about my grades and the welfare of the school, is all. I know he’s a pain in the ass sometimes but he would never…”

            “Harry was under veritaserum, Draco. He would not lie even if he wanted to,” Severus replied as he told everything that his pet said during that fateful night under the effects of veritaserum, leaving his blonde godson tearing up out of guilt.

            “I…I…I can’t believe…I’m so sorry…” Draco started crying a little, feeling so remorseful over what his father did to his lover’s best friend. Severus came around his desk and hugged his godson, comforting him with a backrub like he used to do it when Draco was younger.

            “This is why I have to do this. I will not let Harry be raped by anyone else, especially not your father.”

            “How much more pain can my father do…?” Draco sobbed in his arms, fresh salty tears of guilt and shame escaping from his silver-grey orbs.

            “Much more in his lifetime. That is where he gets his pleasure, Draco, from other people’s pain,” Severus said sadly, remembering many of the things Lucius had done ever since they formed this bond of brotherhood relationship, more so ever since the nasty older blonde had gotten him into this situation and dared to lay his hands on his beloved.

            “I’m so sorry,” Draco dried his eyes and bowed apologetically. “I apologize to you in his behalf.”

            “Don’t, Draco,” Severus said as he straightened him up. “You did nothing wrong.”

            “I still feel guilty. He’s still my father and…”

            “And you are nothing like him, Draco. The sins of the fathers doesn’t have be paid by the blood of the sons. If anyone should be sorry, he should, but then again, I wouldn’t forgive him so easily. Remember to never be like him, boy, no matter what. I know you have been into the occasional mischief in school lately,” Severus stopped him when the blonde tried to protest, “I’m not blind, boy, I’m a professor. I can know a troublemaker when I see one. It’s alright to get naughty once in a while. Just remember never to stoop to your father’s level.”

            “I won’t. I would never be like him. Never.”

            “Then you have nothing to worry about, Draco.”

            Draco nodded, then frowned a little, “I just wish you didn’t have to do this.”

            “I will do anything for my Harry.”

            “Guess whatever I say would not sway you,” Draco sighed and shrugged. “I hope Harry would take it as well as I did.”

            “I doubt it. He will be angry and every other emotion, but acceptance is not one of them.”

            Draco chuckled, then stole a look at the time, “Oh dear, I'm going to be late for Transfiguration! I was already late for Charms, I can’t afford to miss out another class. Father would kill me if he knew…” he muttered those last words as he gathered his books. “Good luck with you and Har.”

            With that he quickly ran off, leaving Severus alone in the potions lab surrounded by the scent of today’s lesson.

            “I hope. I need all the luck I can get.”

\--:--

            Harry was sitting at the Quidditch field. He had just finished clearing up the Quidditch equipment after the Gryffindor and the Hufflepuff team had a friendly training match and was now reading an Easy-to-Read children’s storybook out loud, learning the words. Severus, on the other hand, after he finished teaching another class, went out to search for him. Seeing him from afar seated there at the reserve players’ bench reading, he smiled and went down the hill.

            “Hello there, Harry.”

            Harry looked up and grinned, “Hi, Master.”

            “What are you reading?” he asked, sitting next to him.

            Harry held up the book and showed him the cover. It was a kindergarten version of a Muggle book entitled ‘Little Red Riding Hood’, a gift from Hermione.

            “Ah, I remember that,” Severus smiled as he remembered browsing through a few children Muggle books when he was in one of his leisurely trip to Muggle world with Lucius a few years after Draco was born. “The Muggle version is too nice to the wolf though.”

            “I like story,” Harry smiled.

            “Hmm…” Severus lamented a little. He felt really bad right now that he had to wipe that beautiful smile off his face with what he was going to tell him next. “How have you been?”

            “OK. Hermione and Ron teach new words.”

            “I’m glad,” he smiled. “What about…Draco’s father?”

            Harry looked away. He didn’t want to answer that question. Ever since he told Severus and Albus the truth about his predicament under the influence of veritaserum, Albus had been keeping a tight watch on him. He was taken along with the old man everywhere he went, even during today’s council meeting under the pretense of serving refreshments while Albus talked matters with some of the representatives of the Ministry. Of course, Lucius was there, but with Albus around, he dare not behave out of the norm. But that didn’t stop him from sneaking a few gropes or two under the table when Harry served tea and snacks to him. Luckily after that, Albus made Lucius come to his office to look through some complicated paperwork and talked elaborately about his son’s progress in school, keeping him distracted enough to allow Harry to sneak out and do his chores. Knowing that Lucius would never set foot in such a public place like the Quidditch field where every eye can see them together made him feel safe enough to sit there and read his book, but the question Severus asked made him fell a little restless again.

            “I’m sorry I asked. You don’t have to tell me, I am not your Master…and soon no one will be.”

            “What you mean?” Harry looked at him in surprise and confusion.

            “I want to free you, Harry.”

            “You…You dun wan me anymore…?”

            “That is not it, Harry. If you were free, Lucius would never be able to touch you again. He would be committing a crime to touch you the way he did. Don’t you want that? Don’t you want to be free from him?”

            “But…you, me, together, right?” Harry held onto Severus’ sleeves.

            “I’m not sure what you mean,” Severus was a little muddled. He still need to get the hang of Harry talking in incomplete sentences.

            “I free, you be with me still, right?” Harry rephrased his question.

            “If Albus will let me, yes.”

            “How you free me?”

            “Albus and I will go to find out as soon as semester break is on. But, Harry, I will have to warn you that it will be hard.”

            “Why?”

            “They make masters do dangerous tasks in order to free their slaves. Harry love, I may die if this doesn’t work.”

            “Die?!” Harry was shocked. That was the last thing he wanted happen to his beloved. “No, no, no! I dun wan! I dun wan u to die!”

            “I would rather die than have that…that THING rape you anymore!”

            Harry started tearing up. He knew his master would do anything for him, and so would he, but dying was something he himself was willing to do, not for his master to do. Anything but that.

            “You die…I die…”

            “No, you won’t. You will be safe. You will have Albus to look after you and have someone else to love you just as much as I do.”

            “No!” Harry screamed, shaking his head. “You die, I die! I dun wan u to die! You die, I go cut myself, I go jump, and I go die!”

            “Harry, you will not!” Severus gripped the boy’s arm. “Stop that. You will and can get over me if it came to that. I will not allow you to take your life over me. Someone else will love you just as much as I do and you will learn to love him as well…”

            “No, no, no! I no love anyone! I love you! I love Master. I no get over anything!”

            “If everything goes right and according to plan, I will live, but no promises.”

            Harry leaned forward to hug him tight, “No do this…Please no do this…”

            “I have to and I will. I will not let Lucius hurt you ever again. I’d do whatever it takes to protect and if this is the last thing I have to do, so be it.”

            Harry shook his head, his forehead rubbing against his chest as he sobbed in his arms. It didn’t have to come to this. He didn’t want this to happen. He was contented the way life worked for him. He was contented just the way it was. Why did Severus have to sacrifice so much just for him? Even though he knew the older man loved him, that didn’t give him the right to throw away his life just for him.

            “Shh…Love, it’s alright,” Severus said as he rubbed his back just the way he did to Draco. “Don’t worry. Be strong for us, OK, Harry?”

            Harry, seeing that no begging or crying or screaming could move his master away from his decision, got frustrated and tore himself away from Severus, slamming both his fists on his shoulders before running away. If that was what he wanted, fine, he could just run in front of a huge train and die for all he cared. He ran and ran until he was at Albus’ office, spat the password and, ignoring Fawkes’ greeting chirp in that empty office (apparently Albus and Lucius had left the building, so to speak), stormed into his room, not coming out for the rest of the day.

            Severus sighed. He knew this wasn’t going to be easy, but at least he had got the message through and won’t have Harry kept in the dark when the day came for he and Albus to face the music. Slowly, he got off the bench and picked up the ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ book Harry had forgotten.

            He’d probably give this back…when the time is right.


	25. Chapter 25

            Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry soon became a little empty and quiet as most of the students have returned to their homes to make use of the semester break to party and relax and do whatever teenagers do best. The only ones staying in Hogwarts were those who were preparing for the O.W.L. examinations, and the lot of them was mostly seated in the library cramming their heads off with as much information as possible, which included the Old Married Couple Hermione Granger and Ronald.

            Due to Hermione and Ron’s situation, Harry was temporarily free from his nightly speech, reading and writing classes, but occasionally Hermione and Ron (and sometimes Draco whenever possible) gave him some new books to read and practice his speech on his own. They have heard from Harry personally in one of their nightly classes before the semester break began that Albus and Severus were going forward for their task to free Harry. Despite the fact that the Old Married Couple were happy for the boy and gave him countless reassurance that no harm will come to Severus (obviously they did not know the true procedure of freeing a slave), they could not lift Harry’s spirit. Not even Draco, in one of their secret meetings in the prefects’ bathroom, could persuade the boy to see the brighter side of things, and Harry refusing to meet up with Severus even when Albus allowed it or Harry refusing to even look at the Potions Master in the eye was not helping the situation. Albus had an idea that the discussion about Severus wanting to free Harry did not go well, and he tried to break the cold shoulder Harry was giving Severus by deliberately giving him more chores that involved helping Severus out in the lab, but Harry continued to give the older man the silent treatment and just did everything that he was asked wordlessly and with no eye-contact.

            Finally, when Albus checked the calendar to see that it was about 3 days since semester break started and that he had pretty much finished everything that he had required to do, he gathered the necessities he needed for his trip to the slavery business and made a firecall to Severus’ office.

            “Severus? Severus Snape?”

            “Yes, Albus?” Severus poked in, being that he had just finished marking the students’ essays.

            “I think it’s about time we get going. The sooner we get it done, the better,” Albus advised. At that moment, Harry had just come out of his room after cleaning up and saw Albus chatting with Severus in the fire. The poor boy’s heart ached at upon seeing his beloved’s face in the fire, the memory of their discussion a few weeks ago still fresh in his mind.

            “Yes, you’re right, I suppose,” Severus sighed. As much as he wanted to go through this, part of him was still having second thoughts. “I will meet you in front of the school. It is better that Harry not see me right now.”

            “I see you,” Harry muttered grudgingly within earshot, though his words were directed more towards Albus than Severus to make it like he was still in silent terms with Severus, before walking out of the office to do his chores for the day.

            “Oh dear,” Albus lamented. “Still giving you the cold shoulder, I presume?”

            “You could say that. I still have a book of his that he forgotten when he ran out on me after I broke the news to him.”

            “Oh? What is it?”

            “Little Red Riding Hood,” Severus held up the book for Albus to see. He had not given back the book to the boy. The time was still not right.

            “Ah, a lovely children’s book. I used to know the writers. The Muggles tend to domesticate it a little too much though. We know it didn’t happen the way the Muggles wrote it. Anyways, we’ll go straight after lunch.”

            “Yes, sir,” Severus replied, though he preferred not to eat.

            Soon, after lunch, they met up at the entrance of Hogwarts. Argus Filch the caretaker was there to open the gates and prepare the carriage for them. Albus was there first, Severus came about 10 minutes later.

            “All set, Severus?”

            “Yes.”

            “We will be back a little later, Argus,” Albus said to Filch as he and Severus entered the carriage. “I have left Minerva and Hagrid in charge of the school while we’re gone. If anyone asks, tell them we are running a little errand for the Ministry. Very hush-hush business.”

            “Yes, Headmaster,” Filch said as he helped them close the door of the carriage and signaled the carriage driver to make a move on.

            From the Astronomy Tower where Harry was sweeping the floor and dusting the star-viewing equipment, the boy was able to get a full view of the school carriage leaving the school grounds. Ron and Hermione were there at the tower as well to accompany Harry while he did his chores, books and parchments for notes-taking never leaving their laps. They could tell from the solemn looks the two professors exchanged with each other as they entered the carriage that they were on their way to discuss matters with whoever was in charge of enslaving Harry and his fellow colleagues about the matter.

            “I wonder why they didn’t choose to Apparate,” Hermione commented as the carriage went further and further away. “It would’ve been so much easier.”

            “Maybe they want to conserve their energy,” Ron suggested. “I heard that Apparating is tough stuff and drains your energy. The further the destination, the more it’ll suck up your energy. I wouldn’t want to end up collapsing face first on the ground out of exhaustion if I were either of their ages.”

            “Where did you hear that sort of nonsense?”

            “Uh…Fred and George…?”

            Hermione rolled her eyes. It was so typical of her fiancée to fall for such stupid rumours. Sometimes she wondered why she loved him at all, but probably it was Ron’s gullibility that drew her in. Seeing Harry looking longingly and sadly at the disappearing carriage, Hermione asked, “You OK, Harry?”

            Harry nodded unconvincingly.

            “You ain’t gonna say goodbye to em, Har?”

            Harry hesitated for a long moment before shaking his head indignantly and muttered, “No. Dun wanna.”

            With that the boy left the tower hastily, leaving the Old Married Couple giving each other a pitied and dismayed look.

\--:--

            The ride felt like forever as the carriage took them all the way to Diagon Alley. The duo traveled in near-silence, with Albus chattering about nothing in particular and Severus nodding and responding to his conversation with no more than one syllable, not that the old Headmaster minded. In fact, it got him even more animated and talkative, and despite the fact that the conversation was one-sided, the old man seemed to enjoy himself, as if whatever they have been conversing throughout the journey was very meaningful.

            His eyes focused out the window, Severus finally spoke up, “I want Harry to have everything of mine if I die.”

            “Let’s not go into that, Severus. You’re not sure what’s going to happen,” Albus said as he tried to keep up the cheerful mood.

            “Yes, I know, and that’s why I want it. Everything is set. I already had my will drawn up the day before yesterday, so if it happens that I don’t survive, Albus, you know what to do.”

            “Alright. I’ll see to it that the Ministry follows it. They cannot contest with Legal Affairs. They’ll have to follow your will, you can count on that, no matter how big a grudge they have against you. That’s the biggest weakness the Ministry has: bureaucracy. Everything has to follow to rule in their system.”

            “Good. That will ensure my pet will be taken care of.”

            “Are you sure you want to do this?” Albus asked. “I know you have other servants in your home that would tear off their limbs for you. I’m sure they can help you run the errand.”

            “To be honest, I am a little bit hesitant about this,” Severus admitted. “But Harry would never forgive me if I sent anyone else to die for him. He loved each and every one of my household members, no matter how badly they behaved towards him in the past—I know some of my hired help are less than pleased to have him around back then—and he was already upset enough that I am doing this. Besides, how can I prove my sincerity if I asked someone to do my dirty work?”

            “You have a point there. I do wish you would come back in one piece though…ah! We’re here.”

            Just as Albus said it, they soon found themselves staring at the carriage port of Diagon Alley. Telling the driver to wait for them, they got off the carriage and made their way into the sea of people, nodding and greeting anyone who recognized them (Albus being the one doing most of the greeting, though). Following the Potions Master’s lead, Albus entered Knockturn Alley and walked quite a long way past dirty ragamuffins and troughs of beggars, street-wise crooks and ugly men and women in general, eyeing them with greedy looks, until he and Severus found themselves entering a small town which looked much cleaner and more high-classed than the ones they walked past, but still darker nonetheless. Soon they were standing in front of Obsidian Multi-Purpose Hall, where Severus’ new lease of life had begun.

            Entering the hall, they soon came across a woman who was cleaning up the bar of its glasses and refilling the booze into its respective bottles with her wand. There were a few other people in there cleaning up the hall and rearranging the tables and chairs, and by the looks of it, someone must’ve used this hall last night for some sort of celebration. Judging by the way she did her magic, they could tell that she was a warlock. Albus flashed a professional smile at the woman and approached her.

            “Excuse me, can I speak to the manager of this hall, please?”

            “Do you have an appointment?” the woman asked, looking at him with her piercing blood-red eyes as she flicked her long dark-brown curly tresses lazily with her dainty fingers.

            “No, unfortunately, but do tell him it’s urgent. It’s regarding ‘the business transaction’ my friend here had with him.”

            The woman gave both the old Headmaster and the Potions Master a skeptical look before rolling her eyes tiredly and muttered “Fine” before walking all the way to the back of the hall. A few minutes later, she came back and pointed with her slim index finger at the direction where she came from, “He will see you now. Go all the way back, then through the first door you see, down the hall and to your left. If you see a fat guard walking about, tell them Illust sent you here.”

            “Thank you very much, young lady,” Albus said, getting a grunt as a reply before he gestured Severus to come along.

            As the duo followed her direction, they could distinctively hear a very far-away and very muffled echoes of voices that were only appropriate for adults’ ears. They could only assume that they have pretty much entered the heart of the slavery business and that those voices were of those poor souls being trained to perfection to serve their future masters every whim and fancy. They couldn’t really pin-point where exactly did the voices come from, but they assume it could come from underground, hidden from the public eyes and ever evading the authorities because of its illegal nature. As the woman predicted, a guard almost the size of half of Hagrid was patrolling past them. Albus told the inquiring guard what the woman advised them to tell him and soon nodded, leaving them alone. Seeing their faces, he could tell that they have heard the echoes and quickly took out his wand to cast a Silencing Charm. Apparently, it was a routine for him to double-check if any of the ‘training lessons’ were leaking out of the walls and it was his job to silence it so that no feds who come checking could hear their underground trade, and it seemed the charm had worn off and it was his cue to cast it again.

            Soon, they found themselves standing in front of the office that bore the name ‘Jefferson Underhill: Hall Manager’. After rapping on it a few times, Albus heard the welcome call and entered it. Sitting on the table smoking a Cuban cigar was an Asian man whose wild hair reminded Severus of Sirius, only that his hair was shoulder-length and in chopped layers. His eyes were big and clever, almost like a pair of cat eyes, and his skin was tan. He had a smile that could make many men and women swoon and had a rather straight nose. Despite the suit he was wearing and a bit of stubble here and there on his chin, his facial features almost resembled a seventh-year student, like a child in a grown-up’s body.

            “Ah, good day, sirs,” he greeted as he stood up in a height that could match an average basketball player to shake Albus and Severus’ hands. Gesturing them to sit down, he continued, “Master Snape, what a pleasant surprise to see you here! I remember you buying off Harry James Potter from me almost a year ago. I hope my merchandize is to your satisfactory.”

            “Yes, but as of late, due to certain circumstances, he was taken away from me. But that is not why we are here.”

            “Oh dear, how unfortunate,” Jefferson replied, but his voice was not as sincere as his face seemed to be. “Ministry problems, I presume? A few of my clients in the past had that sort of problems. So how may I help you? Persuade the Ministry to ‘let bygones be bygones’, perhaps?”

            “As much as I wish so, that would not be necessary,” Severus cleared his throat before continuing, “I wish to free him.”

           Jefferson kept quiet for a while, giving Severus the “Ah, here comes another one” look before leaning back and took a drag of his cigar and asked, “Oh? And why should I? He’s just getting started on bringing in the dough since I bought him when he was 10 years old, coming to 11 at the time. He’s got potential.”

           Albus tried to keep a straight face as he listened in to all this, but inside he was disgusted.

           “He is not going to be sold, again, Mr. Underhill,” Severus replied. “I am sorry to inform you on that. He deserves to be free and I intend to do so for him.”

           “Well, I must be honest with you, Master Snape, that this is not the first time people like you coming over here all self-righteous asking to free their slaves, only to find they ain’t got the guts for it.”

           “Trust me, _sir_ , you do not know me.”

           “And that, _sire_ , is not the first time I’ve heard before. But, since you insist, I’ll give you a shot. I always give my clients chances.”

           “Just name your terms, Mr. Underhill,” Albus said, “and we will be on our way.”

           Severus nodded in agreement. He came prepared for anything, and was ready for anything Jefferson can throw at him. After considering his options for a moment, Jefferson accio-ed a file from his cabinet and displayed its contents on the table, which included Harry’s photograph. As the young manager looked through the paperwork, the duo stole a look at the photograph. It was a picture of Harry totally stripped down bare and had a leash with a long chain that was attached to some sort of railing, staring at whoever was taking his picture in fear. In the picture, they could see him trembling, with numerous bruises and a few cuts and scraps all over his body as he tried unsuccessfully to cover his nether regions. They could tell from his jade-green eyes in the picture that he was horrified to be there, hoisted from his familiar Muggle background into a world so strange to him, and that sent a jolt of sour-ish pain through their hearts. Severus felt like he was willing to give his entire fortune just to find the person who took this picture so that he could torture him into a slow and painful death.

           “Well, he is new, and he’s born from a pretty good breed. He should have a fetching price. Let’s see…” Jefferson muttered as he tapped his chin, his eyes still fixated on the paperwork before him, considering the price.

           Severus clenched a fist, struggling to hold back a punch. Whispering to Albus, he hissed, “This man is making Harry sound like a piece of meat or and animal! I won’t stand for this!”

           Albus did not reply, but gave him a “Calm down” look. It was best that they remained on the manager’s good side if they want to cut this deal.

           “I assume you know how we do deals on freeing slaves, right?” Jefferson finally voiced out.

           “We have been informed, yes,” Albus replied, with Severus nodding in reply.

           “Well then, then I don’t need to explain how it works. I’ll just get straight to the point. For his price, I want you to get me the eye of a dragon. And not just any dragon. I want the Norwegian Ridgeback.”

           “That’s absurd. It’s too much just to free a slave!” Albus protested.

           “That boy is the best addition we have,” Jefferson retorted. “Because of him, customers have been rolling in for a while. I mean, he’s the son of the community protégé. I won’t lie to you; I know of his parents’ background. James Potter and Lily Evans, right? Before I was in this business, I used to be a fellow member of his father’s Quidditch team, and he and his wife are like the darling of the society, the sweetheart of the Ministry and the saint of the public. It was no wonder they have made a lot of enemies and green-eyed monsters, me included, and that crazy mass murderer Tom Riddle. Even when we concealed his scar, quite a number of them are still able to recognize the boy as their child, and I was astonished that he was even able to stoop so low as to be sold into my business. Everyone loves a protégé’s kid, especially when they’ve diminished into such a low level as a sex slave. It turns them on to see their demise.”

           “I see,” Severus replied, fighting the urge to shove his foot into the man’s mouth. “How long have I got?”

           “Oh, it’s alright, take all the time you need. We can wait. But,” Jefferson warned as he leaned back in his chair, “if you don’t show up by the end of this year, I’ll have to assume you failed and your life expired, and we will have to take back our merchandize, regardless whoever you transfer the temporary ownership of him to while you’re gone.”

           “Very well, I agree to the terms,” Severus nodded, smiling inwardly to himself as he remembered the will he had drawn out and Albus’ promise to fulfill it.

           “A dragon’s eye, you say?” Albus confirmed the price.

           “ _Norwegian Ridgeback_ dragon’s eye, if you please,” Jefferson stressed.

           “Alright then. We will bring the eye for you. Make sure you prepare all necessary documents for Harry’s release.”

           “I’ll be waiting,” Jefferson agreed, a sarcastic smile spread across his tan face.

           “We will see ourselves out,” Severus got off the chair and left the room, not even looking back at Jefferson’s fake professional wave goodbye, with Albus following behind him.

           “The nerve of him. Asking us to get such an outrageous payment! If he had asked for a mermaid’s song or a centaur’s bow and arrow, I’d be glad to get it for you, since we have it just right at school at our disposal, but this…”

           “That’s the whole point of their terms of release,” Severus sighed as he led the old Headmaster out of the hall and out of Knockturn Alley. “It was not meant to be easy. I will leave first thing tomorrow morning.”

           “Very well then, Severus, since you have already made up your mind to do it,” Albus said as they finally reached the carriage port and mounted the carriage, signaling to the driver who was enjoying a pint and a smoke with his friends to get going. “I will have your replacement from the Ministry in the meantime. I’ll tell them that I sent you on an urgent confidential errand.”

           “Thank you,” Severus said as he felt the carriage began to move slowly away from Diagon Alley. “I hope to have this done by the end of school.”

           “Hopefully. Would you like some assistance in your quest?”

           “No. It is my task and mine alone, Albus.” The last thing the Potions Master wanted was to have anyone involved.

           “I think you need assistance. I can give Hagrid for you. He’s good with creatures of such nature. I mean, he is, after all, our professor for Care for Magical Creatures subject.”

           “No, Albus. Just me.”

           “I must insist. You’re almost like a son to me. If you have to die, at least you won’t die alone.”

           Severus sighed, tired of arguing but still adamant to his decision to be a lone ranger in this, “I am fine, Albus. Please let me do this alone.”

           Albus shrugged in defeat, knowing that he couldn’t persuade the Ice King of Hogwarts even if he were to be cast an Imperius Curse, “At least say goodbye to the boy. He deserves it.”

           “He will just run away. I still have his book though. Maybe I could talk to him using the book as an excuse…if he would still want to see my face.”

           “He deserves to see you, even if it’s for the last time. You don’t want to let him think you don’t care, do you?”

           “Yes. I guess I will come tonight,” Severus replied as he could finally see the tower of Hogwarts coming into view, hoping to gods of all religion that Harry would at least grant him that much of a visit.

\--:--

           Harry yawned and stretched as he finally finished his chores for the day. As he made his way back to the office and to his room to retire for the day, the words of persuasion and encouragement from Hermione, Ron and Draco came raining down in his mind about Severus’ wish to free him.

           _He wants what’s best for you, Harry…He loves you very, very much to do this…_

_No master would ever wanna sacrifice himself just to free you, lad… Ya don’t have to worry about that ol’ bat…_

_Uncle Sev will be alright, I’m sure of it. He’s a tough guy…If he can survive an explosion in the lab, I don’t see why he couldn’t survive this…_

           Harry groaned and wiped those imaginary speech bubbles off his head as he spoke the password and went to his room, bidding Albus, who was at his desk writing as usual, good night. As he took off his usual work clothes and stared at the wardrobe wondering which night clothes to wear for tonight, he contemplated on whether he was a little too harsh on his judgment on Severus’ actions. He knew that he was only doing this for the best of both of them. If he were to be free, he didn’t have to worry about obeying anyone’s orders unless necessary and he didn’t have to worry all the time about when Lucius would pop out of nowhere to fuck him blind. If he were free, he could finally date Severus as a normal couple just like Hermione and Ron, with Albus’ consent, of course. And probably Draco was right: he was overstating his worries about Severus getting killed. The blonde had told him that the lab had suffered more explosion than the Muggles doing nuclear test bombing back in the Cold War, and Severus had lived to tell the tale about it, so what are the odds of him dying out there to fight for his freedom? Besides, according to Draco, no one has ever successfully free a slave before and Severus was willing to beat the odds, so why not give him the credit for sticking his neck out for him? Does that not prove that he loved him so much that he was willing to do anything? But still, the thought of the unthinkable still lingered, and that was the last thing he wanted happen to Severus.

           While he was deep in his thoughts, Severus was in his room at the staff hostel, staring at the ceiling with the child’s book on his lap, having read it for the past hour over and over again until he could remember the lines by heart. Although he knew that in the original story, Little Red was given a choice between Path of Needles or Path of Pins while the wolf beat her to it and killed the grandmother, then made Little Red eat the leftovers of her grandmother before asking her to strip naked and lie in bed with him until he was drowned in the river by a laundress when he discovered Little Red had escaped with the pretense of going out to pee, it was still fascinating to read how the Muggles tried to pave off all the horrifying gory details to suit their children’s mindset and hide them from the truth of the fact that people back then were just as cruel as the ones depicted in those ancient fairytales. Personally, he thought the Muggle children should learn the truth just as he and all his childhood friends—if he had any—did. Finally, unable to stall his visit to Harry any longer, he got up from his chair and brought the book along with it, making his way to Albus’ office. Seeing that the old man was not at his desk as usual (probably retired for the night), he took a deep breath and went over to knock on the door to Harry’s room.

           “Grandpa Albus?” Harry’s voice rang from inside the room. Oh, how he missed that voice. Inside, Harry was surprised. Albus had never visited him in his room at such a late night.

           “No, love, it’s me,” Severus replied. Harry scowled.

           “I no wan see you. Go away.”

           “Please, Harry. I have your book. You left it at the Quidditch field the other day.”

           Harry hesitated for a moment. He was wondering where the book had gone to. Finally, he opened only a crack, pouting, “Gimme book.”

           Severus slid the book through the crack, but held onto the knob, not wanting Harry to close the door at his face, “Can I talk to you, Harry?”

           “I no wan to talk to you,” Harry replied indignantly.

           “I am leaving tomorrow on my quest, Harry. I just want to say good bye, and maybe get a hug?”

           Harry considered for a while, then released his hold on the door to let him in, still partially naked with only his underwear as he fixated his gaze at his wardrobe, looking for what to wear for bed. Severus took only one step inside, afraid that Harry was still grudging over as he bit back a groan seeing Harry’s delectable body. Ever since he found out about Lucius raping Harry, he had never dared to touch him for fear of seeing Harry’s traumatized face whenever he tried to get near him like the last time. As he watched Harry finding what he wanted to wear, which was a white male-version of a nightgown that ran all the way to his ankles, his will was struggling to keep his awakening nether regions at bay and forcing the inner sexual demon back into its cage of self-control. _Now is not the time to think about ravishing the boy, Severus!_ he screamed in his head to himself, _Focus on what you’re supposed to do, you dunderhead! Focus!_

           “I am going to release you, Harry. I promise. It will be hard and difficult but I will.”

           “I no want you go,” Harry said grudgingly, dressing up in his night clothes and not looking at him.

           “I have to, Harry. I am not going to let Lucius or any other asshole near you.”

           “I can take care of myself! I no wan u to die for me!”

           “I will try not to, pet. Just think a few months from now you will be free.”

           “I no wan be free if u die…” Harry’s voice trailed away, the choked feeling starting to crawl up his throat.

           “Let’s focus on the good right now, OK, pet?”

           Harry didn’t reply, trying to blink back his tears, knowing that he couldn’t persuade Severus to change his mind. He wished so badly that it did not have to come to this, but he knew once his Master had made up his mind, there was no turning him back from it.

           “May I have a hug? For good luck?”

           Finally relenting, but still not looking directly at him, he turned around to face his open arms and wrapped his own around his waist, hugging him tight as he tried in vain to force his tears back. Severus hugged Harry back, taking it all in. It felt like forever since they were like this in each other’s arms. The small warmth and the soft feeling of Harry’s tiny arms around him was all that mattered right now. The rest of the world could just blow up into ashes and wither in the wind for all he cared; all he ever wanted was right here in his arms, and he was willing to trade his life for it.

           “I love you, pet,” Severus whispered.

           “I love you, Master…” Harry whispered back, trying to hold back his sobs.

           Severus, after making sure Albus was really not around, knelt down and kissed Harry softly, savouring the taste of his rosy-tinted lips. Harry kissed back, his lips trembling as he tried hard to suppress his cries. Severus stroked his hair with one hand and wiped the boy’s tears with the other, leaning his forehead against his.

           “Don’t be scared, love.”

           “I…I no scared,” Harry allowed the older man to help him wipe away the tears that fell out of his sparkling jade-green eyes like rain, “I just…no wan you die…”

           “Don’t be,” Severus assured him. “If you believe in me, I will come back.”

           “You promise?”

           “Yes.”

           “I wait. I wait for you,” Harry vowed. No matter how long it takes, he will wait for him to return if that is what his beloved Master had promised.

           “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Severus said, then kissed him once more after the boy nodded. “I need to go, I need rest and so do you.”

           Before he could leave, Harry held onto his sleeve with both his thumb and index fingers, blushing as he looked at the floor, whispering, “Sleep with me.”

           “I can’t, love. Not without Albus’ express permission. If he saw me in your bed…”

           “I no care. I wan u to sleep with me, or I no let u go,” Harry pouted, still looking at the floor, blushing as he pretended to be very interested with his toes. Severus chuckled lightly at his expression. It has been a long while since he saw his pet putting that sort of face. Looking around again, he stepped fully into the room and closed the door, locking it.

           “Fine, but if I am caught with you, it’s your hide, not mine.”

           Harry giggled and pulled at Severus’ sleeve until he was near the bed. Severus reached down and pulled the covers aside.

           “The bed is rather small though. We will have to sleep right next to each other, love.”

           “I no care. I wan sleep with you.”

           “Alright, pet, alright,” Severus chuckled again as he took off his shoes and outer robes before getting onto the bed and turned to face Harry, opening his arms to let the boy sleep in them. Harry quickly nuzzled into Severus’ arms, enjoying the warmth and the scent of mixed potions he was so accustomed to ever since the first day he was bought and brought into his Master’s manor.

           “I missed you, love. So much,” Severus whispered as he petted the boy’s ebony-black unruly hair.

           “Me too,” Harry replied as he huddled closer in his embrace. Severus kissed the top of his head and petted him some more.

           “When I get back, you will have learned complete sentences. We can talk all you want.”

           Harry mumbled a sleepy agreement as he slowly fell asleep with his thumb in his mouth. Apparently he still had not given up the habit of thumb-sucking himself to sleep even though he had left the manor to live the Hogwarts life.

           “You are too old for that, my love.”

           Severus took the finger out with a silent pop and kissed those lips that just held his thumb captive gently as he watched him drift into Dreamland before he, too, succumbed to the World of Slumber.


	26. Chapter 26

            Albus woke up at the sound of Fawkes chirping the morning song. As his old eyes adjusted to the slight glare of the morning sun that seeped through his window, he remembered that this would be the day where Severus Snape would be embarking on his journey for his quest to get the dragon’s eye to free his little pet Harry James Potter. Stretching his old bones and getting out of bed, he headed to the fireplace to make a firecall to Severus, only to receive a silent reply. _Has he left before saying goodbye?_ The old man thought. _That’s not very usual of him to leave without at least having a last word with me._

            His old magical gut instincts told him that he had to head to Harry’s room. Without a moment’s hesitation, he dressed in his usual work clothes before heading towards the boy’s room, wishing ‘Good morning’ to Fawkes along the way. He knocked at first, but after hearing no reply and feeling the doorknob indicating that it was locked, he whispered an unlocking charm and entered quietly to see Harry and Severus sleeping in each other’s arms. Smiling at the beautiful sight, he went in and tapped Severus lightly on the shoulder, waking the Potions Master.

            “Good morning, Severus. I’m surprised to see you here.”

            “Oh, Albus…” Severus stirred, slowly waking up. Seeing the awkward situation he was in and remembering the taboo, he quickly explained, “Nothing happened, Albus. I promise you.”

            “It’s quite alright, I understand,” Albus smiled knowingly. “Well then, I suppose you should be going before the boy wakes up and have his usual crying fit. I swear this child always balk whenever he is with you.”

            Severus sighed. He didn’t want to leave, but he knew he had a mission to do in order to secure his beloved’s happiness. He slowly and gently got out of bed and pulled the covers over him.

            “Watch over him, Albus. I’m counting on you.”

            “Naturally. Just be careful out there.”

            “I will,” Severus replied, more towards the sleeping Harry than the old man as he slipped out of the bed and started putting on his shoes and outer robes.

            “I’ve just contacted the Ministry last night and told them you’re running ‘a confidential errand’ for me. They weren’t too happy when I refused to disclose what was so ‘confidential’ about the errand you were running, but they at least respected my judgment that nothing but good will come out of this. They said they can try and persuade Horace Slughorn to get out of retirement and replace you for the moment.”

            “Good Lord, Albus, not him!” the Potions Master hissed quietly. He went out of Harry’s room, Albus following behind him, and closed the door quietly before glaring down at the old man. “He grades students based on popularity, not based on work. You know that he is all about the glorious old days and whose students’ parents he used to teach that had ‘wonderfully flourished’ in the wizarding world. He wouldn’t even give anyone that had no connections with him a second glance, let alone give a fair marking for everyone. Even I know how and when to give marks for those deserving, even if he/she is the most unpopular student in the entire Hogwarts.”

            “I agree, but he is the best teacher who can teach just as good a Potions Class as you that they can find. Unless you have other candidates, I’d be happy to recommend the Ministry.”

            “Fine, fine,” Severus sighed and massaged the bridge of his nose between his eyes. He wasn’t the type to brag, but he had to say that he was the best Potions Master in Britain; no one was going to be as good as he was. No one else came close.

            “Do you want me to help you with the packing for your journey?” Albus asked.

            “I was just going to take the clothes on my back, maybe some food and a couple of potions for precautionary or medical purposes.”

            “I’d suggest you bring more clothes where you’re going, maybe something that can enable you to trek or hike, and some money as well. And since there is high chance you might be wandering around in the Muggle world to get where you’re going, you should consider packing in some Muggle clothes as well.”

            Severus wanted to roll his eyes but decided against it. It would only cause Albus to pester him more, and by the time he was done, he’d probably make him carry more than he could handle.

            “Fine, I’ll keep that in mind.”

            “I guess I’ll leave it to you then. Can’t send you off coz I need to meet up with Horace to discuss matters. I hope you have a safe journey and succeed in your quest,” Albus said as he held out his hand to shake.

            “I will be,” Severus nodded, shaking the older man’s hand before leaving the office to make his preparation for his quest.

            As Albus watched Severus leave his office, he muttered to himself, “I hope you’ll make it out alive, regardless if you succeed or not, for Harry’s sake.”

\--:--

            “Master Snape, you can’t be serious!”

            The Head Housekeeper was looking disapprovingly as Severus ordered Neville and Colin to help him with his packing while he scanned through books for his research and reference and copied them all down onto his parchment.

            “Yes, Greta. I am serious. No matter what you say will never move me from my decision.”

            “But…But you would be missing out work and…and we would have no one to man the house,” the Head Housekeeper tried in vain to come up with an excuse not to let him go. After all, she had probably practically raised him ever since he inherited the manor. “What will we do without you, Master Snape? Surely you cannot leave us alone to watch over this house with no one to serve. Besides, you said that you might end up losing your life. Who will we turn to then?”

            “Harry will take over the ownership of everything in this manor, including you all. He will be your Master as soon as he had come of age. If possible, I’d like the rest of his life to be raised in this house among familiar people like you.”

            “What? But…But that’s preposterous! We can’t serve anyone else, certainly not the boy. You are our one and only Master…”

            “And you will follow my orders to the letter, if you truly speak of serving me,” Severus said sternly as he passed the parchment to Colin to be included in his bag. “Albus Dumbledore will be his legal guardian until he comes of age to inherit this house as stated in my will. Everything has already been set and arranged.”

            “You…You truly love that child so much to forsake your fortune to him?” the Head Housekeeper asked in defeat, knowing that she couldn’t persuade her Master any further.

            “More than my own life, Greta, and don’t tell me you do not share the same liking I do towards Harry. I’ve seen you occasionally lost and sometimes unconsciously look around as if trying to see if the boy is there. Do you deny it?”

            The Head Housekeeper smiled ever so slightly and sighed quietly, “No, I do not deny it. Things aren’t really the same without that boy around. Even Moss wants him back just for someone to scold at.”

            “He sure looks lonely in the garden since Harry had left,” Severus replied, remembering the last time he saw the Head gardener moping about dejectedly and actually trimmed off more than he should on the hedges, then screaming at Neville demanding him to admit that he was the one who over-trimmed the hedges when it was otherwise.

            “All done, Master,” Neville and Colin said simultaneously as they gave Severus his travel bag.

            “Thank you, Longbottom, Creevey,” Severus said, magicking the Muggle clothes on him and slinging the bag over his shoulders. “I shall be going now.”

            “Do return safely, Master, for the boy’s sake,” the Head Housekeeper said as she sent him out.

            “No promises, Greta, no promises.”

\--:--

            Severus was soon trekking down the Muggle roads of Germany after apparating into this part of the European country from Hogsmeade on his quest to Romania to get what he wanted. According to books on dragons that he had copied down in his parchment before he set off on his journey, most of the dragons nowadays are close to dying due to the over-slaying back during the age of King Arthur to prove manhood and knighthood among those adrenaline junkie knights. They were now kept in a federal wizarding reserve somewhere in Romania and usually are taken out of captivity whenever the school needed them for their Triwizard Tournaments, and all Severus had to do was go all the way to Romania and maybe persuade the men there to allow him to collect whatever he needed. As he walked on, he began to reminiscence the final hours he had with his beloved green-eyed boy when he heard his name being called in a very thick Scottish accent.

            “Oy, S’vrus!”

            Severus spun round to see Rubeus Hagrid, the huge half-giant running after him about 10 feet behind. He groaned inwardly. He didn’t need to be a genius to know that the huge mountain of fur was sent by the worried wart Albus Dumbledore. His mind was thinking of ways to flay Albus in the most painful way possible as Hagrid’s thundering footsteps followed after him, ignoring the shocked stares of the Muggles at Hagrid’s size.

            “What do you want, Hagrid?” Severus grumbled.

            “Nothin’. Just tho’ I tag along wi’ yer.”

            “No, go back,” Severus replied vehemently, quickening his footsteps to distance himself from him, in which the half-giant caught up quickly.

            “Nuh-uh. Canna’ do tha’. I got me orders tuh foller ya ‘round.”

            _I am going to boil that old coot in oil,_ Severus growled inwardly as he stopped running away from Hagrid, sighing. “You can still say you did and just go somewhere else.”

            “Nope. No can do, S’vrus. Dumble would know.”

            Severus massaged his temples. He hated it when people are right, especially when that person is the half-witted half-giant who was all brawn and no brain. He let out a loud sigh before saying, “Gods of Merlin, I really hate my life now. Well, since I can’t persuade you otherwise, you might as well keep up with me. I will not let you slow me down.”

            “A’righ’,” Hagrid replied, following happily behind Severus, making the Potions Master felt as if a dark cloud was over him. The situation was not made any brighter with the fact that more and more curious Muggles that they passed by were eyeing them with awe and shock, more towards Hagrid’s out-worldly appearance than Severus’ pale, ice-cold demeanour, and that Hagrid seemed delighted to have all the attention as he waved gleefully at anyone who cast their gaze at him more than they should.

            While Severus considered whether to try and lose the half-giant or leave early in the morning when he was asleep, Hagrid decided to engage conversation with him a little.

            “Dumble sez he gits replacement fer me. Dinna know who, but I hopes he or she will take good care ol’ Buckbeak.”

            Severus rolled his eyes. He couldn’t care less. Personally, he thought that the Care for Magical Creatures subject was just a plain waste of time.

            “I hears of wat yer doin’ in dis quest. Is fer dat ‘Arry boy, aye?”

            “Yes,” Severus replied angrily, his patience tested as he felt Hagrid was probing too far into his private business.

            “Dumble tol’ me. He sez tha’ boy actually belonged tuh ye, an ye wanna get sumthin’ tuh free ‘im. I admire ye fer tha’. It’s such a touchin’ thin’ tuh do. Ye reli luv tha’ boy, aye, S’vrus?”

            “It’s none of your business, but yes, I do.”

            “I hears also tha’ thin’ yer doin’ is gonna cost ye yer life?”

            “It could.”

            “Wha’ would tha’ boy think if yer gonna die n leave ‘im alone?”

            “He would be free from slavery. When he turned 17, he would be very wealthy. I’ve got everything covered.”

            “An if tha’ Min’stry ain’t lettin’ ‘im git it?”

            “I have no other relatives, so they will have to pass it down to Harry just as stated in my will.”

            “Yes, but wat if…wat if tha’ Min’stry dinna care? Wat if tha’ Min’stry…?”

            “Shut up, you big oaf,” Severus snapped as he gave him his famous cold glare. “I have enough to think about at the moment, like how to get to Romania, so I would appreciate it if you would just leave me alone to my thoughts!”

            “Sorry…” Hagrid apologized, feeling a little upset that Severus wouldn’t want to even engage a little friendly conversation with him.

            The duo traveled in silence for the moment. After about 3 hours of walking (with breaks in between and ignoring more shocked stares from the Muggles), their stomach decided that it was time they settled down for lunch. They went into a cheap diner café and ordered themselves some lunch before staring at each other in uncomfortable silence, twirling their silverware for no particular reason. Needless to say, they made a rather grand entrance as Hagrid’s looks were far more than inviting for those who would dare to spare another glance or two, even setting off some hushed gossips among the ladies in the café. Finally Hagrid decided to break the ice.

            “Ye know why I canna leave ye? Why I truly canna leave ye?”

            Severus felt that this statement sounded kinda wrong, especially when the Muggles hear it, and the last thing he wanted was those nosy busybodies to listen into their conversation, so he cast Muffliato around their surroundings before replying, “Do tell.”

            “Dumble made me…made me tuh tha’ Unbr’kable Vow,” Hagrid replied, twiddling his thumbs.

            “Figures,” Severus replied, not the least bit surprised. He knew exactly how the old man can bend people’s will and make people do things he wished them to do without even as much as lifting a finger.

            “So ye askin’ me tuh go summat n lie tuh Dumble, yer askin’ me tuh die. I canna do tha’. I'm too young tuh die.”

            _Not a bad idea, considering how you have come close to making me strangle you myself,_ Severus thought inwardly, then voiced out, “Thank you for telling me. Now I have two reasons to kill the old coot.”

            “Ye not gonna reli harm ol’ Dumble, are ye? He only wan ye tuh be safe. We all know yer ‘is fav’rit teacher an all…”

            “You need to learn when someone is telling the truth or when they are being sarcastic,” Severus sighed as the waitress finally brought in their order: Severus a semi-well done steak and cream of mushroom soup and Hagrid double helpings of an in-house set lunch. “By the way, you’re paying your own food. I’m not about to go Dutch for you.”

            “Oh,” Hagrid got the point of his former statement about sarcasm, then grinned, “ Righ’. Dinna worry. Dumble gave me plenty cash tuh spend. So…wat’s yer gonna git tuh release tha’ boy?”

            “A Norwegian Ridgeback’s eye,” Severus replied casually, sipping his soup.

            “Norwegian Ridgeback? Dat’s my little Norbeta’s kind!” Hagrid exclaimed as he popped a cherry tomato into his mouth, taking care not to stain his beard.

            “That dragon you have years ago?” Severus raised a brow.

            “Yup. Tha’ one,” Hagrid nodded. “Why wou’ tha’ bloody slaver guy wanna hav’ wit an eye from such pretty lil’ thin’?”

            “I didn’t ask and I don’t want to know. If that’s what they want in exchange for Harry’s freedom, I am going to get it, and that’s all I care about right now.”

            “So how’re we gunna git tuh Romania? How’re we gunna find one neways? Dragons ar’ almost a dyin’ breed.”

            “I know. That’s what I’m trying to figure out,” Severus sighed. “There is a small reserve out there, the problem is after we find one, how to get the eye. The trainers out there will not let me just take an eye and leave.”

            “Then we’ll jus’ hafta try our luck then,” Hagrid replied. “We’ll figger out how tuh git tuh Romania first, then we gunna think ‘bout hows we gunna make ‘em trainers give us tha’ eye. Imma sure they is gunna hav’ summat a way tuh git tuh tha’.”

            “I suppose so.”

            The rest of the lunch was filled with a one-sided conversation from Hagrid’s part about his “glorious days” having Norberta for a pet, and Severus’ mind wandering towards his thoughts of Harry while he was gone.


	27. Chapter 27

            Lucius sighed as he came back home from work in the Ministry. It was the usual tedious missions that he had to tirelessly go through almost everyday, including the piles of paperwork, and the increase in it during his son’s school semester break was not exactly helping him very much. And then there was the Hogwarts errand he had been assigned to do any chance Cornelius Fudge got. He would’ve been glad to do it if it weren’t for the fact that the old geezer Albus Dumbledore was always hovering about the little sex slave Harry or butting in and appearing almost too coincidentally whenever he wanted to find the boy to release the stress that was hanging around the testosterones between his legs. Even when he was able to shake the old man and continue his search, he couldn’t locate him anywhere and the boy had stopped being the obedient little slave and meet up at their usual rendezvous spot at the haunted bathroom.

            That and also because the slave that he bought from Sirius Black was a little too easy to break. According to Sirius, the slave he had sold to him was a Mudblood, born in an Asian country where daughters are not exactly the most desired family member in the household. She was sold to the business when she was barely Harry’s age and had been servicing many masters throughout her 18 years employment in the business. She had a habit of resisting at first, but eventually within one week she was already broken, allowing the masters to do her in any form of fetish they pleased. Lucius had a suspicion that the slave might probably be a nymphomaniac and might actually _enjoy_ the sex, which was not much of a challenge for him. He liked the idea of breaking slaves nice and slow, seeing them begging and crying as they were taken against their will, trying to fight him as much as they could. The slave he had right now was nowhere near that challenging excitement level. He considered giving her back to Sirius and getting his money back.

            Walking to the kitchen to get himself something strong to drink, he just so happen to run into his ex-slave Remus making the daily tea for his son. He grinned as he stared the younger man’s ass, the latter totally oblivious to his presence. Not being able to be with Harry left him with a fleet of wanting, and the new slave he had was not up to his standards anyway, and now seeing Remus’ delectable body as he went about his business made him miss the good old days when he and the younger man went through every lustful night satisfying every aspect of ‘bodily exploration’ (as Lucius called it) he and his wife could muster up. It was too bad that he gave Remus to Draco. It mattered not, really. As long he had him in sight and the public property factor served to his advantage, he could care less if he belonged to any of his hired help. He walked in slowly, putting his arms around Remus’ waist.

            “Hello there, cub,” Lucius whispered huskily at Remus’ ear, rubbing his finger around the younger man’s navel, making him jump at his touch and spin round to stare at him in suppressed horror at the sight of him. Oh, how he missed the look of fear on his face. He looked just like the first time he bought him.

            “Um, uh, good afternoon, master,” Remus greeted back as he sped up his tea-making, wanting to be anywhere but near his ex-Master right now.

            “Draco can wait. He is studying very hard at the moment,” Lucius put his hand on Remus’, stopping him from his duties. He ran his finger along Remus’ lips, trying to part them. “Open up for me, Remus dear.”

            “Master…I…I can’t…I belong to Young Master now…” Remus tried to pry his way out of Lucius’ hold in vain.

            “Your point? I am still your master. Or have you forgotten that you are public property to do as I please? Now open up.”

            Remus steeled himself, bracing for the worse. There was no way he would break his vow and betray his beloved. He shook his head to push Lucius’ hand away.

            “No. Young Master owns me, not you.”

            Lucius frowned. He had always found it kinky for Remus to resist him before during their sex games, but in this situation he was downright disobeying him. He turned him around forcefully and slapped him across the face, making the poor half-werewolf fly and hit against the wall.

            “I could sell you like that.” Lucius snapped his fingers to emphasize his point. “Do you think your ‘Young Master’ wants to see you go, leaving him sad and all alone?”

            Holding his throbbing cheek, Remus breathed hard as he forced himself to get up and stand against him, “You…You can’t…make me do what I don’t want…”

            “You think you are so much better than me, just because someone says they love you? You are no better than dirty,” Lucius snarled, his lips curling into a wicked smile as he watched Remus’ eyes widened in shock at Lucius’ statement. “Oh, don’t pretend that you don’t know what I’m talking about. I am the man of the house. I know everything that goes on under my roof. I’ve seen the way you and my son exchanged glances and hanging around the house behaving like some Hogwarts schoolchildren on a teenage love affair. Indulging such superficial emotions make me sick, and I’ll be damned if I allow my one and only heir to associate his pure-blood lineage with the likes of you!”

            So saying, he cast a locking spell both the front and back door of the kitchen and pushed Remus down in his knees. Remus winced as his knees rammed hard on the kitchen floor, chafing them and making them bleed.

            “No…Please, Master…Stop…”

            “Now be a good whore and make me wet for that tight ass of yours,” Lucius grinned, enjoying the begging look on Remus.

            Remus pursed his lips together and shut his eyes tight, not wanting to cooperate.

            “Now, pet,” Lucius pulled at Remus’ hair. “Or I will use the spell. I know how you don’t like me using spells on you, and that spell would definitely give you a terrible hangover. You wouldn’t want Draco to know about our little date, would you? I would much rather you do it on your own.”

            Remus, fearing Draco’s possible rejection if he were to know about this, finally complied. His mind was screaming desperate apologies to Draco as he leaned forward to unzip Lucius’ pants and took him out. His man meat was just as disgusting big and fat as he remembered during his years of servicing him. He soon started licking at the tip tentatively and reluctantly.

            “Mmm, I have missed you, cub,” Lucius sighed in relief at the familiar feeling of Remus’ wet tongue as he ran his hand through the short hair.

            Remus began to suck him and took all of him in straightaway, just like he knew Lucius liked it, but his heart was screaming in disgust. After a few moments of deep-throating, Lucius’ hips began to move, literally fucking his mouth.

            “Yeah…Feels so good, my dear Cubby,” Lucius called him by his old sex name—a name that represented his werewolf—when they were still together.

            Remus didn’t like the way Luc was fucking his mouth and attempted to escape again, only to be pulled against the blonde, cutting off his air.

            “We’re not done yet, Cubby.”

            Remus almost choked at Lucius’ sudden move as he could feel the former’s dick hitting deeper into his throat, forcing his gag reflex to react. He tried to struggle to get the offending organ out of his mouth but Lucius held firm to his head.

            “Stop struggling and I will let you go.”

            Remus stopped struggling reluctantly and let Lucius fuck his mouth, grips Lucius’ side of the pants tightly until his nails dug through and stung his palms to remind himself that he wasn’t doing this willingly. Lucius pulled out a moment later, ordering Remus to stand and turn around to lean against the table. Remus gasped for breath, relieved to finally have the uncomfortable feeling of Lucius’ cock in his mouth out as he did as he was told, pushing the tea he was supposed to finish making aside to make way for his leaning body. Pulling down his pants and taking off Remus’, Lucius pushed his slightly saliva-lubricated cock into him, forcing himself all the way in with one thrust. Remus let out a strangled yell, forgetting how Lucius had always liked it hard and rough. He gripped the table for support, forcing himself not to keel forward as Lucius banged him relentlessly.

            “It feels so good to be inside you again, Cubby,” Lucius licked the shell of his ears as he moved harder and deeper. “Now let’s not make any noise. We don’t want my innocent boy coming in and barging on us now, do we?”

            So saying, he stuffed two fingers into Remus’ mouth to gag him as he kept on going, looking for the spot where it made his little sex slave scream and cry and hitting it as hard as he could. Remus let out one muffled scream after another as Lucius pounded him. He wanted to bite off those fingers in his mouth but the pain in his ass was distracting him, even more so when Lucius finally found his sweet spot and made him see stars. Besides, as much as he wanted those fingers chomped off, he couldn’t do it without earning a sound beating and be sent off back into the business and away from his beloved Draco, and even though Lucius was an evil son of a bitch, he was still Draco’s father, and Draco wouldn’t want a werewolf for a father if Remus acted according to his primal instincts. He probably might end up in worse consequences than being sent back into the business, with a possible ‘put to sleep’ action involved.

            Lucius whispered filthy words into Remus’ ear about how he missed him or asking if Remus missed him, hitting his sweet spot again and again and enjoying the sound of Remus’ muffled screams as he made the poor half-werewolf involuntarily see stars and his cock throbbing, leaking with pre-cum. As he neared his peak, he stopped his talking and started thrusting faster, assaulting the spot over and over again. Remus’ muffled screams got louder as Lucius rammed him against the table, making it shake and creak under pressure and his cock ready to come. One more thrust and soon the blonde came hard inside Remus. Remus, feeling Lucius’ seed filling him and his sweet spot unable to take anymore stimulation, came as well, though he felt disgusted that he actually came from Lucius doing him.

            “Mmm…Wasn’t that nice,” Lucius panted slowly as he pulled out and cleaned himself off. He wore back his pants and patted Remus on the head. “Let’s not tell my Dragon about this, OK? Unless you don’t know what’s good for you.”

            Remus waited until he left before slumping to the floor and sob silently, his heart begging for Draco to forgive him. After he recovered, he slowly cleaned himself and the floor of the mess and finished making the tea. He gathered himself and made himself looked as normal as possible, then left the kitchen with the tray of tea and entered his Young Master’s room with a smile. Draco, on the other hand, had thrown his quill down. The letters were all looking the same in his tired-out eyes. He was wondering where was Remus when the said half-werewolf entered with his tea. Draco smiled; he needed tea really badly right now—probably just about anything to distract him from studying—and possibly a little something extra.

            “Hey there, Drake. How’s the studying going?” Remus asked.

            “Badly. What took you so long?" Draco replied as he kneeled up from his spot on the floor. “Come here. I’m hungry.”

            “Sorry, Drake, took me a while to find the cake you love eating so much,” Remus tried to fake it as he put the tray of tea and goodies in front of Draco. “Dig in.”

            “Not for that,” Draco pouted and leaned up, undoing Remus’ pants. “I want some ‘milk’ with my tea.”

            Remus, in that split second, instinctively grabbed Draco’s wrists out of fear, the incident that happened in the kitchen still fresh in his mind. It was only he realized that his grip on Draco’s wrist was almost bruising his beloved that he let go apologetically.

            “Sorry, Drake. Maybe…Maybe not now. I’m…not really in a mood right now…”

            “But…” Draco looked up at him, feeling dejected at being denied what he craved for so long since the semester break, “We have not been together in a long time.”

            “I know but…I just don’t feel up to it today…”

            He could tell Draco looked needy, and understood that the young boy needed something to ease down the long awaiting hormones, but with the incident still lingering in his head, he couldn’t bring himself to ‘rise to the occasion’. Finally, seeing that he wasn’t getting any at this moment, the boy sighed.

            “OK then, no pressure,” Draco muttered as he sat back down.

            “I’m really sorry, Drake. Maybe next time, OK?” Remus tried to lighten the mood by taking Draco’s favourite cake and passed it to him. “I managed to find the cake you liked so much though.”

            Draco took it from him, taking a bite. As he ate quietly, a million questions came through his mind: What had he done? Had he been too aggressive? Remus already wanked today? Had he acted like his father? That last thought put a shiver down his spine. While he ate, Remus helped to pick up Draco’s dropped parchment everywhere on the floor, still thinking guiltily about what happened in the kitchen. His chafed knees rubbing painfully against his long pants, but he was glad that he was wearing them so that it would cover the evidence of the incident.

            “Remy have you…” he blushed, looking at the older man’s cock. “Have you been fingered, uh, there?”

            Remus stared at his spent cock and blushed a little, saying, “No. It hasn’t been touched.”

            “Oh,” Draco replied briefly as he ate a little more, not exactly tasting it. “I don’t mean to be bossy or needy, I just…want you.”

            “It’s alright. I know you’re a little…excited since it’s been a while since we last ‘got together’ but…” Remus hesitated a little before continuing, “I’m just tired over chores today. Not really in a mood at the moment.”

            Draco wanted to argue. He wanted to exert his authority as a Young Master to order Remus to fuck him, but then he would really behave like his father. He turned away, continuing to eat. Remus sighed inwardly, his heart clenched in guilt to see his beloved like this, hanging over there without being able to pleasure him.

            “I…I’m sorry, love…”

            “Do you still love me?”

            “Of course I love you. I will always love you. I love you more than anything.”

            Draco drank his tea, hoping that Remus meant what he said. Finally he decided to change the subject to lighten the mood, “I am so tired of studying. This O.W.L. exam is killing me. But I don’t want Father to cane me again. How I wish this stupid exam thing doesn’t exist.”

            “He won’t cane you. I’m sure you’ll do fine in the exam. And even if he does, I’ll make sure I’ll break his bones.”

            “Don’t say that. You will get punished. I don’t want you hurt. Why, if Father ever hurt you I will hurt him instead.”

            Remus smiled and thought to himself, thinking, _Funny you should say that now…_

“Can I at least get a kiss?”

            “Yes, my Young Master,” Remus replied, leaning over on all fours to kiss Draco’s lips. Draco took his face in his hands, kissing his slowly and thoroughly, hoping that his actions would make Remus give in to the primal urges he desperately want from him. Unfortunately, Remus returned his kiss, but his body still remained on all fours. Draco leaned back, looking sad because he still was not getting what he wanted, but he didn’t want to force him into it. The last thing he wanted was to let himself become like his father.

            “I love you very much, Remus. You know that, right?”

            “Yes, I do, Drake. I love you too. I love you more than life itself.”

            Draco hugged him, resting his face softly on Remus’ beating chest. No matter how many times he hear him say it, he would never get tired of it.


	28. Chapter 28

            Semester break was going to come to a close within the next two week and Draco had yet to have any action with Remus. He was determined to at least get it down and dirty with him once before school reopens, but he never seemed to be in the mood. He would always give the excuse that he was tired because of chores or that he had to run errands, and sometimes even disappear before he had the chance to ask him. He would’ve made use of his power if he hadn’t had his father reminding him the results of misusing it, but he was getting raunchy by the day, and Remus forcing abstinence on him was not helping him. In the end, the only thing that kept him at bay was burying himself in piles and piles of revision books, until he could almost memorize every word by heart. He might probably actually make to be the male version of Hermione Granger if he had kept this up, but unfortunately his brain capacity was not as vast as hers. By the end of the day, his brain felt as if it was going to melt out of his ears.

            “Argh~! I am so damn tired right now,” Draco groaned as he leaned back at his chair a little too far and would’ve landed on the carpeted floor if Remus hadn’t got up from his position in waiting to capture him, although personally Draco had wished Remus let him fall. A little bang on the back would do his exhausted mind a favour in ending its misery of information overload.

            “You sure look like it,” Remus chuckled as he pushed the chair back into its upright position. “Wanna take a break?”

            “Yes, please!” Draco smiled in relief. “How about a walk?”

            “Alright,” Remus agreed as he helped Draco off his chair. “It’s about time you rest your eyes and brain a bit.”

            “Sure,” Draco replied, taking Remus by the hand and leading him out the yard. Remus followed his lead, walking around the huge backyard, being very quiet. It was pretty obvious that the incident was still haunting him, even though it has been almost more than a week. He had never felt this before, not even when he was violated by Lucius every night while he was still under his ownership and pining Draco secretly from afar. It might probably be the fact that now since he was officially with Draco that spurred and spilled out all that pain and guilt.

            “The yard is too big,” Draco commented as he looked around.

            “Huh? I’m sorry?” Remus asked as he was a little distracted with his thoughts.

            “The grounds,” Draco repeated, gesturing at the huge backyard that had a small forest just a few miles behind. “Too vast. We could get lost.”

            “Don’t worry. You have me. If that ever happens, I can get us out of here,” Remus replied. He wasn’t lying; his heightened sense of smell could get them anywhere they wanted, no questions asked.

            “But what if I want to get lost?” Draco asked, looking at him with the eyes that Remus knew were naughty and playful, the eyes that he knew was the real Draco. He chuckled at that look.

            “Drake, don’t kid around. It’s not something to trifle with.”

            “I wasn’t,” Draco grinned, meaning business.

            Remus smiled weakly but didn’t retaliate Draco’s statement. He knew Draco was always finding ways to test his loyalty or test how far he would go to show how much he loved him, but at this moment, he didn’t feel like he was worthy to do anything for his Young Master, not after his terrible betrayal to him that day in the kitchen.

            “Remus, what is wrong?” Draco couldn’t hold back his question any longer. He had been dying to ask this ever since Remus first denied sex from him that day. He tried to brush it off but the more he was denied the loving they usually have every other day, the more the question itched within him. “You are silent and far off. Something happen?”

            “No, nothing happened,” Remus replied, his face seemingly casual but his heart beating wildly, feeling nervous. Was he being obvious? Had his cover blown? Had someone told Draco about what happened? But he was sure no one was in the room when he and Lucius did that shameful deed…

            “Yes, it did. That day you acted like you wanted me, you go make tea and then you don’t want to be ten feet near me. Since then, every time I tried to get you fuck me blind, you always had an excuse, and you seem to be avoiding me in one way or another. Tell me the truth, Remy. Did something happen?”

            “Nothing happened. Really. I’m just a little…tired from everyday chores, that’s all. Nothing wrong about that, is it?”

            “What do you do all day?” Draco demanded.

            “The usual,” Remus shrugged. “Cleaning up after you, cooking, washing, making your tea…”

            “You’re never tired by those trivial chores before.”

            “Well, there’s always a first.”

            Draco narrowed his eyes, glaring at him skeptically. He knew he was lying. He could tell. Years having this half-werewolf around taught him the little tells and body languages he had whenever he was telling something far from the truth, like not looking at him directly in the eye, for instance, and also scratching an itch that was probably not there, which was exactly what he was doing now. His eyes darted down to where Remus was pretending to scratch and saw a mark was around his hip. Immediately he pulled the shirt up without warning and saw that it was a large bruise. Glaring at him, he demanded an explanation.

            “What is _that_ , Remus?”

            Remus’ breath hitched. He had totally forgotten that he had that bruise because Lucius held him tightly there so that he wouldn’t struggle when he raped him that day. Quickly, he pulled his shirt down.

            “Th…That’s… That’s nothing, I just…bumped against a table…”

            “That is a fucking finger print, Remus! I’m not stupid!” Draco growled as he pulled the shirt up, seeing more bruises on the other side. His voice was shaking in anger as he asked, “Did you…Did someone fuck you?”

            “No!” Remus replied almost too quickly. “No, no one fucked me! I would never…”

            “Someone did, Remus. I know someone did!” Draco shouted, tears started coming out of his silver-grey eyes and down his fair cheeks. “Who was it, damn it! Who the fuck did you fuck?!”

            “Draco, please,” Remus said as he tried to wipe the tears away. The last thing he wanted was him to know that his father raped his one and only slave and get in trouble with him. “Don’t be that way, please…”

            “Then tell me!” Draco pushed his hands away hastily. “Just tell me!”

            “I…” Remus wanted to, was dying to, but couldn’t. “I can’t…”

            “Why? Do you love him?” His voice was now shaking with something else that Remus recognized as hate, anger, jealousy and the worst of all feelings he feared from him: disgust. That broke all Remus’ reserves.

            “No! No! How could you say that?! I love no one else but you! I would never love that bastard! Never! I hate him! I hate him with everything I've got! But he…” Remus looked down and shut his eyes tight, struggling hard not to cry.

            “He…?” Draco thought, then the idea started to click. He knew his beloved had always hated someone, even before he was given ownership of the half-werewolf. He was the only person he would ever had that intense negative emotion… “My father?”

            Remus soon broke down and cried. He hid his face in his hands, feeling utterly remorseful. Draco, after digesting everything in, glowered and his face became darker shade of colour, his eyes screaming bloody murder.

            “I am going to kill him,” the boy said quietly.

            “No! No, please don’t!” Remus begged, holding onto Draco’s sleeves. He didn’t want this to happen. Not this way.

            “Go to our room now.”

            “No, I beg you, don’t…Please…”

            “To our bedroom, Remus Lupin, _now_.”

            Remus wanted to persuade him but knew he couldn’t once he started calling him by his full name. He obediently walked back to the bedroom under Draco’s watchful eye. As soon as he entered the room, Draco slammed the door and locked it with his own set of keys. As expected, the horrified Remus could be heard banging against the door and shouting out his name, begging him not to do anything stupid. He barked another order to tell him to stay put and don’t move, calling him by his full name to emphasize the point. After standing out there waiting for Remus to quiet down, he stomped towards his father’s study and barged in without even bothering to knock, glaring at him venomously.

            “You bastard! You sick bastard!”

            Lucius was quite taken aback, although he could pretty much guess what the outburst was about by the look on his son’s face. He knew it was going to happen sooner or later anyway, either by Remus telling him intentionally or accidentally, or Draco had figured it out on his own, but that didn’t mean he would allow his son to raise his voice at him.

            “What is the meaning of this, boy?” Lucius asked sternly.

            “Don’t ‘boy’ me, Father. You touched _my_ slave! Is it not enough that you had to ruin Uncle Sev and Harry’s life? Now you have to ruin my slave?!”

            “Watch who you’re talking to, boy,” Lucius stood up and moved towards his son, his pride challenged. “I will not tolerate such behaviour. And so what if I did touch your slave? He used to belong to me, and he is bound under the public property factor. You, the son of a Ministry member, should know better than to question that!”

            “I don’t give a damn about that public property factor! That’s just a bunch of bullocks!” Draco yelled, willing away his tears. “You have that new slave Black gave you! Why can’t you fuck her?! What do you have to touch my Remus?!”

            “Because I feel like it. And because I don’t think it’s any of your business questioning my decisions. I am the man of the house and your father. My word is law. Now get out of this room before you embarrass yourself.”

            “No, Father. You are going to pay for hurting my Remus.”

            Without warning, he lunged at him, catching the older man by surprise as he pinned him to the ground with his own body weight. He wished he had his wand right now so that he could hex him with whatever curse he has got in his mind right now, but unfortunately, due to the rise in performing illegal under-aged magic back then when he was in his 2nd year, Hogwarts had made it a rule to have all students keep their wands in the school grounds under Filch’s care until they have graduated and old enough to possess them, and that wand-using have to be confined within school hours till then. He leaned over him, punching him in the face until his nose bled. He knew when it was over he would be in BIG trouble but all that mattered now was to inflict pain on him as much as the latter did to his beloved.

            His victory didn’t last long. Lucius soon regained control of the situation as he reached for the wand that was built in together with his cane and pointed it at him, yelling out a spell to push him off. Draco flew off, hitting the wall, but in only a moment he was standing and charging towards him, anger and adrenaline fueling his desires to bash his father into a pulp. Lucius, again, suffered a few blows from Draco before grabbing both his wrists to stop him.

            “You little snot! How dare you attack me?! I’m your father! Who do you think you are?!”

            Draco just attacked him again, kicking his shin as a reply. Lucius took both his wrists in one hand and slapped his face with the other.

            “I will not allow you to behave this in front of me, boy! Your mother would be very displeased if she had been here to see you like this! Now stop it!”

            “I don’t give a rat’s ass what Mother thinks of me! Let go of me!” Draco snarled. “I hate you! I HATE you!”

            “Good!” Lucius snarled back as he slapped Draco again and again, egging him on “Hate! Carry on and hate! That is what we Malfoys are! We hate the world for its impurity, for its vulgar existence and for its unfairness to us pure-bloods who deserve to be the rightful beings to run it! We hate the world that allows blood traitors, Mudbloods and Halflings to walk around as if they own it, as if they have equal rights as we do. We run on hate, boy, and the only way to quench it is to be who we are: Malfoys, the probable only true pure-blood amongst the damned world of impurities! It’s in your blood! You cannot deny it!”

            “Fuck you! I hope you burn in all seven hells!”

            “On the contrary, boy, Lucius said in a dangerous husky tone that Draco knew too well meant trouble as the older man accio-s his cane, “ _you_ are going to be fucked.”

            So saying, Lucius used a spell to ground him onto the floor face down and uses another spell to strip his clothes off. Draco struggled against the spell but it was no use. As much as he hated to admit it, he knew his father was way much better in DADA spells than he was, as his father had always been a rather fond fan of the Dark Arts.

            “Now,” Lucius said smugly as he circled around the naked boy, rapping the cane on his palm. “What should we do about this behaviour you displayed just now?”

            Draco remained silent, frowning at the floor with his mind cursing all sorts of vulgar obscenities he could come up with.

            “I think, our boy needs to be disciplined…right about NOW!”

            A loud crack of flesh was heard as Lucius rammed the cane onto his ass. Draco bit his lip as the first surge of pain shot through his whole body, but he kept looking at the ground, trying to distract himself with irrelevant thoughts. As Lucius continued to cane him, lecturing him about obedience, about being a Malfoy, and having pride and all that whatnot he had told Draco since he was a kid, each of his caning harder than the previous one, Draco let himself cry, but he refused to cry out loud, knowing Remus would come running as soon as he could hear him. He doubt that his orders and that thick door could hold his superhuman strength and his determination to save him could hold him back if that happened. Remus had always protected him through thick and thin, and it was his turn to protect him. He had learned to block out his father’s rants anyway ever since he was old enough to know that whatever his father said were just bullshit blown in the wind.

            Lucius continues to whack him until he was black and blue. Most of his blows were directed onto his butt, with a few other stray streaks on his side, his hips and his back. Finally, when he was tired of exerting his anger and energy on his son, he released the spell off him and went back to his seat to smoke his pipe.

            “Let that be a lesson to you for biting the hand that feeds you. Now get dressed and get out of my sight.”

            Draco put on his clothes, wincing a little as his clothes brushed against his bruises, and ran out. His backside hurt so bad he feared his father had broken something. He stood outside his room and wiped his face off his tears, willing away anymore that were coming down. No matter how much it hurt, he knew it was nothing like being raped, and he was a Malfoy. Malfoys can take in anything. Malfoys are strong individuals who would not crack or be cracked. That was the only true thing he held firm from all the nonsense lecture his father bombarded at him. He took out his keys and unlocked the door before entering the room.

            Remus, on the other hand, was getting worried that Draco had not returned. He had never wanted him to be involved in this. He had hoped that he himself would bear all the burden and hoped that the feeling would go away and slowly ease in to the fact that there was nothing that he could do about it and finally be comfortable with Draco, but all was backfired at that one disgusted question that was directed to him. He had the right mind to just break down the door and rushed to his Young Master’s aid, and was about to do so when the door opened to reveal a grave-looking but nevertheless still-in-one-piece Draco, relieving him of his anxiety.

            “Drake! Drake, oh, thank gods you’re alright!” Remus cried as he reached over to hug him.

            “Yeah,” Draco replied as he patted his back, holding back a wince as he felt Remus’ hand touch the bruise on his back, though it wasn’t as bad a feeling as his ass was feeling. “I made Father’s nose bleed, it was pretty cool.”

            “You did what?!” Remus exclaimed, horrified and amused at the same time. “You could’ve gotten yourself killed! Oh god, I was so worried I was going to see you in a Muggle body bag! That’s what they always use when they take away my dead colleagues when something bad happens between them and their masters.”

            “My father would never kill me. I am his son and heir. The last thing he want ever since Mother was diagnosed by a medi-witch that she could no longer have children due to the trauma onto her womb after giving birth to me is to have me dead.”

            “I guess that much is true. Come on. It’s been a long day. Forget studying. Forget everything just happened. You need rest. I can bathe with you if you want.”

            “Naw, let’s just sleep, OK?” Draco shook his head and gave him a soft smile. He wouldn’t want to let his beloved see the results of going against his father. Remus would tear him from limb to limb for sure.

            Remus suspected something but decided not to question it. He could tell something was wrong, but thought it would be wise not to say anything. Draco was fine and in front of him, that’s all that matters. He shrugged and said, “Alright. At least let me help you change in your night clothes.”

            “I think I’d rather sleep shirtless tonight. Help me take off my shirt first.”

            “Anything you say, my little Young Master.”

            Draco leaned a little closer and let Remus undo his shirt. He was lucky that the stray streaks on his side, hips and back were fairly light, so now it was just a little small dull of pink.

            “Now yours.”

            Remus let Draco undo his clothes now, revealing the bruises on his hips much clearer. Draco ran his finger it, then leaned up to kiss Remis softly. Remus kissed back, running his hand along his body down to the ass, not knowing what happened there. Biting his lip to hold back a pained yelp, he pulled back and tried to smile casually.

            “Let’s sleep.”

            “Drake,” Remus tried his luck to probe him. “Are you really alright?”

            “I’m fine, don’t worry,” Draco said as he got onto bed and tried to lie down, trying to hide the difficulty he was having not sitting on his butt. Remus, knowing he was slightly hurting—no one escapes Lucius without at least a little scratch—but tried to brush his worries away, helped him lie down in a way that he was facing him and not pressuring wherever he was hurt and held him close, humming him to sleep.

            As Draco drifted off into slumber, he hoped his bruises would go away as quick as possible.


	29. Chapter 29

            Remus stirred to see Draco no longer in his bed. He looked around to see the door of his bathroom slightly ajar and that he could hear water running in the bathtub. He slowly got up and looked at his discarded laundry to see if he had forgotten any clothes item to bring into the bathroom. Sure enough, with his excellent eyesight and observation (plus his sense of smell) he could tell that his Young Master have forgotten his underwear again.

            Semester break was coming to a close, and soon he would only be able to see him during weekends. Draco told him that since O.W.L. was drawing near, he would have to again confine himself at the school grounds studying his head off for the exams, but promised that he would come home to visit during weekends whenever he can. He didn’t mind the fact that he would see his beloved less, just as long as he got to see him, but ever since that confrontation he had with Lucius, he had slightly become distant with him. The boy claimed that he wanted to give him time to adjust to the situation and would only touch him _that_ way if he was truly ready, but lately he had literally refrained from having any body contact with him. He allowed Remus to hold him or hug him, but only briefly and not a second longer, and these days he had often changed his clothes in the privacy of his bathroom. Before, Draco could care less if he was wandering around the room stark-naked while looking for his clothes after shower (which usually lead to hot saucy bedding in the process), but nowadays he insisted on changing in the bathroom and ordered Remus to not enter unless he said so. Even more suspicious was the fact that when he sat waiting hand and foot for Draco while the boy studied, he noticed that Draco had often requested for cushions on his chair and wouldn’t tell why other than he felt like it.

            But who was he to judge what his Young Master anyway? He lived to serve him, and that’s exactly what he was going to do.

            Draco, on the other hand, was examining himself in the mirror. His backside was still black and blue despite the fact that it had been almost a week since his brawl with his father. Lucius must’ve really exerted his force on him to leave such a long-lasting mark. Back then, when his father caned him, his bruises would usually last for at least 3 days, and less if he applied medication on it, which Remus always did for him. In his effort not to let Remus find out about this, he had been secretly nursing himself in the bathroom while he bathed alone with aloe-vera salve he smuggled from his mother’s medicine cabinet. It stung at the touch and unable to see very clearly behind him made his nursing very sloppy, and he knew that he would need more than aloe-vera salve to ease the bruises. He needed something stronger and only Remus knew where the other better, stronger medicines were kept, but the last thing he wanted to do was consult him and let the cat out of the bag. He was so engrossed in examining his bruises that he had forgotten to close his door tight and had allowed Remus to enter suddenly with his forgotten underwear.

            “Drake, you forgot your…” Remus’ words died in his throat as he saw the bruises on his ass. His eyes widened in horror and looked up to a guilt-ridden Draco who tried unsuccessfully to turn around and cover his ass with his hands. “Drake…? What happened there?!”

            “Nothing,” Draco lied, his face couldn’t go any paler if he tried.

            Remus discarded the underwear and stomped to him, removing his hands to see the bruises. After a long 5 seconds, he asked in a quiet but murderous voice, “Did…Did Master do this to you?”

            “It was punishment for attacking him. But I would be willing to take much worse if it’s for your sake,” Draco looked away at first, then turned back and cupped Remus’ cheeks in his hands, “I bet it is nothing to getting raped.”

            Remus didn’t reply. His face was dark and screaming bloody murder as he released Draco’s hold on his face and got up quietly. Draco knew that expression, and it was far from good news. He had to try and persuade him from whatever he was thinking of doing.

            “Don’t look that way. It is not the bad really. In a few days, it will be gone,” Draco tried to make light of the situation, putting up a strong smile.

            Remus was beyond listening. He started to walk out of the room, his face dead set on killing Lucius for hurting his beloved. Draco quickly stopped him by grabbing his sleeves.

            “No, Remus, don’t! Please, if you hurt Father, he could sell you or kill you! Please, let’s just forget everything, OK? I’m going to be just fine…”

            “I will NOT allow him to get away with this!!!” Remus spun round and snarled. Draco shrank back when he saw his eyes; they were golden and his fangs were slightly protruding. He knew what that meant. He was letting his emotions take over his rationale and they were bringing in his wolf nature. It was the exact same look Remus had when he was about to make mince meat out of the Head Cook with the two kitchen knives before Lucius subdued him with his silver rod. But he had no choice. He had to try and calm him down, for both of their sakes. He grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close until their noses touched.

            “I order you not to,” Draco said in a very stern, authoritative tone, making him know his place.

            “He hurt you…He hurt you! I was supposed to protect you! He hurt you!” Remus screamed, his anger flaring as he struggled to keep control, his werewolf features creeping into his system at a snail pace, but still strong enough to make him feel more beast than human.

            “And he hurt you. My pain is nothing to yours.”

            Remus wanted to fight back. He wanted to disobey his Young Master just this once. He wanted to push him away and scream at him to let him do his job as his slave. He wanted to just tear Lucius into shreds and leave no stone unturned to avenge his Young Master for causing him such pain. He wanted to. He wanted to do it so badly. But the human side of him knew it would bring nothing but misery, both to his Young Master and himself. No matter how Lucius treated his Young Master, he was still his father, his blood. He doubted Draco harboured any love of a son towards Lucius, but he knew he respected him for his certain attributes all the same. For him who had lost his parents at a young age and witnessed the only woman who cared to treat him like a real son die, he knew the pains of losing a loved one and he could not allow Draco to go through the same thing he did. He focused his gaze on Draco’s eyes, breathing hard and struggling to will his wolf nature back until he was left with his usual golden eyes, tears pouring out of them, and his fangs slightly less protruding.

            Draco, relieved that he finally managed to help Remus revert back to human, leaned up to kiss his cheek, then his nose and finally his mouth. Slowly and softly, Remus took his lips, giving tentative butterfly kisses, then kisses him deeper and more passionately, hugging him from the waist, being careful not to touch the tender flesh of his ass, and holding him close to his chest. Draco returned the kiss eagerly.

            “I’m sorry…” Remus kissed him over and over again as he spoke, tears still flowing from his eyes that have now returned back to his normal brown. “I’m so sorry…I’m so sorry…I couldn’t protect you…I betrayed you…I'm sorry…”

            “You didn’t betray me, my wolf. You never have,” Draco said as he wiped his tears away and ran his hands down Remus’ back in a comforting way. “I love you.”

            “I love you too…I love you so much…Oh why won’t you let me avenge you? Why won’t you let me appease this anger I feel for the person who had done this to you?”

            “Because, Remy, you could get hurt again. I will not let that happen. I will do whatever I need to protect you.”

            “I thought I’m supposed to be doing the protecting around here,” Remus’ tone sounded pouty though his face was not. “You’re my Young Master.”

            “And you are my slave and my lover. I would do the same to any man who dares touch you.”

            Remus grinned in his tears and lowered his head in shyness, “Stop. You’re making me blush.”

            “I am serious,” Draco said, smiling. “I will protect you as long as I live. You are mine and mine alone.”

            “And I will always belong to you, no matter what,” Remus replied, smiling and looking tearfully back at him.

            After a brief hug and another kiss, Remus helped to fill the bathtub with warm water and mixed it with solutions to make it a bubble bath to sooth the bruises on his buttocks. Slowly he picked him up like a small child with his superhuman strength and lowered him slowly into the bath, letting the boy’s body adjust to the warmth of the water and the weightless bubbles tickled and massaged him gently. After making sure his Young Master was completely relaxed, he took out the sponge and slowly scrubbed him from head to toe.

            “Remus,” Draco voiced out as he quietly let Remus bathe him, “when I am 17 and an adult, we will be out of here. I will buy a house in the country and we can be alone with no one else. Father will never be allowed in.”

            “I would love that very much,” Remus smiled as he applied soap at the other areas of the boy’s body. “But would Master allow it? You’re his only heir. It’d be natural he’d want you to inherit this place.”

            “Yes, but if I remember right, my great-great grandfather never lived here. He traveled a lot. That could work. Besides I hate it here. Too big and I still get lost.”

            “You’ve lived here for 15 years and you still get lost?” Remus asked in a surprised tone.

            “Yep. Mostly in the west wing where the library is.”

            “Ah, I sometimes go there when it needs cleaning,” Remus commented, remembering that he was required to dust the place and wipe the books clean every other month. “Of course, I rely on my sense of smell to get around.”

            “It smells like dust and old book, uck,” Draco pulled out his tongue in disgust. “I very much prefer the smell of the rain or flowers.”

            “You really are the odd one out of the family tree, do you realize that?” Remus asked, carrying Draco bridal style out of the bath as soon as they were done.

            “Yes. Father likes money, Mother likes jewels, and I like nature,” Draco grinned, then turned to Remus and added, “and you.”

            Remus chuckled and tickled Draco’s chin as he dried his beloved, taking care not to wipe too hard on the butt area, then remembered something and pointed, “Wait here. I promise I won’t do anything.”

            As Remus wrapped Draco with the towel and left the bathroom to get whatever he wanted to get for him, the latter leaned against the counter and jumped back when his ass stung like hell, forgetting that he had bruises there. _Maybe I could send for some potion from Uncle Sev…Oh, wait! He’s already gone off to that quest for Harry,_ Draco sighed. And he thought he could confide to someone other than Remus about what happened. Uncle Sev had always been the better father than his own.

            Soon Remus came back in with a bottle of whiskey-coloured liquid. He patted the bed and gestured him to come to him.

            “Come to the bed, Drake, and lie on your belly. I got something much better to help you with those bruises.”

            “What the…?” He raised a brow but did it anyway, lying on the bed on his belly, his bluish-black bottom brandished at Remus. Remus poured a bit of the cold liquid onto his hand and rubbed it onto the bruises of the butt, the icy stinging feeling making Draco jump and yelp.

            “Hey, that’s a tender flesh you’re touching there, pal! What is it you’re putting on me anyway?”

            “I know, but just bear with it, alright, love?” Remus comforted him, putting more of the liquid onto the other cheek, lathering it gently around and cover all the bruised areas. “It’s an old remedy I learnt from the werewolf lady who took me in. A bit of whiskey, ginger and honey mixed together and stored in an oak-based cold cabinet for three months and you’ll have an age-old remedy for the toughest bruises.”

            “You sound like those roadside sellers selling cheap merchandizes…” Draco’s words stopped short as he felt the icy sting again. He bit onto the bed covers, trying not to call out. He knew Remus was trying to help his bruises get better but he couldn’t help feeling that it hurt almost as bad as the caning did.

            “Shh, shh, shh…It’s OK. It’s alright. I’m almost done now,” Remus consoled him, putting another dose of the liqiud onto areas he had missed. He recapped the bottle as soon as he was done. “There. All done. You’ll have to stay there and don’t move until it is dry.”

            “What should I do to occupy my time in the meantime?” Draco chuckled, turning his head to the side to look at Remus. “I don’t want to just lie here doing nothing, and I sure as hell do not want to look at any of those textbooks right now.”

            “I dunno,” Remus shrugged. “What do you suggest?”

            “Well I can think of a few things but you are not ready. How about some more kissing?”

            “Your wish is my command, Young Master,” Remus replied with an eager smile.

            Slowly, the half-werewolf reached down to peck his lips. Draco stretched his hands up to thread his hands through Remus’ hair. As the older man kissed him deeper, doing French, Draco started to mew slightly, his cock hardening as he was immediately aroused by the intimacy they were sharing. Remus looked to see the result of their tongue games and grinned.

            “You seem excited, my love.”

            “Well, duh! It has been three weeks since I had my lover inside me and a week since I wanked. I practically lived in the world of endless revisions and a whole chain of nonsensical words ever since the semester break started without getting anything! Of course I am excited! Though I don’t blame you for that, with what you went through.”

            “But you’re not in a shape to have me inside you,” Remus noted as he stole a look at his bruised butt.

            “I know. I am starting to regret my actions." He sighed. "But I ache for it. What about those toys in Father’s drawer you used to use when you were with him?”

            “Hmm…That could work, but are you sure you want it?”

            “Remus,” Draco said in a desperate tone, “I was not the one raped and plus I need it. Not want, _need_ it.”

            Remus winced a little at that ‘rape’ statement. It was evident that he had yet to adjust to the aftermath of the incident.

            “Sorry,” Draco realized what he said and stroked Remus’ cheek, his heart scolding himself for being a bloody idiotic git.

            “It’s alright. I just need some time to adjust and accept the fact. I’ll go get the toys.”

            So saying, he went off again for the second time, leaving Draco to lay there hoping that Remus had closed the door. The last thing he wanted was to have any of them seeing him like this in such a sorry state. Of course, lucky for him, Remus did remember shutting the door behind him. He sniffed around to make sure that Lucius was not at home before creeping into the master bedroom to look for the sex toys he remembered Lucius kept hidden in a secret compartment inside the wardrobe. Finding what he needed, he quickly made a dash out of the room and came back to Draco’s room.

            “I got it, Drake.”

            “Good,” Draco replied in relief. He had his hand under him stroking himself while he was waiting for the older man to show up. Remus brandished the toy as a dark red-coloured dildo that quite long and thick, with small bumps surrounding the length. Unlike Muggle dildos, sex toys in the magical operated in a way where even Squibs can activate it without even needing the use of a wand. It worked on wandless magic, so as long as you are not a pure Muggle, you can make the dildo vibrate by just whispering the correct spell which will be given by the seller when you buy it from his/her shop. Draco blushed at the sight, a very vivid mental image in his head of how that thing would feel if it were to be inside him.

            “Please, Remy, put it in me now.”

            Remus lubricated the dildo as much as possible by licking and sucking at it, covering it with a generous amount of saliva as he said, “Bear with it. I’ll have to open up your butt-cheeks a bit to put it in. This means I’ll have to touch your bruises for a few seconds.”

            “OK,” Draco agreed, fondling himself harder to distract himself from the pain that is to come.

            Slowly and carefully, Remus pried the cheeks open a little bit to find the opening, giving the toy a few more sucks before lining it and slowly inching it into the hole. Draco gripped his covers, feeling both the pain as his bruised ass was touched and the sting that came as the loosely lubricated toy was slid, but unlike his last experience with little to no prep during the first night Remus made him a man, he loved the burn. He couldn’t care less if he felt as if he was impaled with a sword; the feeling of being filled up by something was too good to be given up for trivial pains such as these.

            “You ready to feel its glory, love?” Remus asked as he inched it deeper and deeper until it was to the hilt.

            “Yes,” Draco sighed as he felt himself filled completely. “But it’s much smaller than you.”

            “Well, you won’t think that once you feel this,” Remus chuckled before he leaned near the dildo and whispered, “ _Vibrato_.”

            Almost immediately, the dildo came to life, letting out a long, deep humming sound as it vibrated in Draco’s ass. Draco nearly arched off the bed as the dildo worked its magic on the inner walls of his anus, making the poor deprived boy screaming "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck” over and over again. Remus looked at him in amusement at first, his own erection slowly coming to life as well. Removing his pants, he lifted Draco’s hips up a little.

            “Get up nice and easy and go on all fours, love, and don’t touch the toy.”

            “It…feels so…good…!” Draco moaned as he did as he was told.

            Remus responded by going down under him in a 69 position and started sucking Draco off, causing the boy to cry out his pet name over and over again against the pleasurable assault on both sides. The half-werewolf held onto Draco’s hips lightly to lower him a little as he sucked him harder. Feeling that he shouldn’t be the only one having all the fun, Draco leaned his blonde head down as well, taking his beloved’s man meat out of his pants and into his mouth. Remus’ breath hitched as he felt Draco’s mouth sucking lightly on the head of his cock, but continued to suck him off. Draco ran his hands down Remus’ thighs, sucking him long and hard, hoping that what he did would make up for what Lucius have done to him. Remus moaned at Draco blowing him, sucking the boy even harder and his fingers massaging the boy’s balls. Occasionally he would pull out and whisper ‘Vibrato’ at the toy to make it vibrate harder before blowing him again, sending jolts of pleasurable shocks all the way up and down Draco’s spine and making him arch his back even harder and his cock even deeper into Remus’ mouth, not that the older man minded, anyway.

            “Re…Remy…I’m so close…” Draco mumbled almost incoherently as he pulled off from Remus’ cock and taking himself out of Remus’ mouth.

            “Don’t go away, let me drink you.”

            As soon as he said that, he captured Draco’s cock again and sucked him hard, his finger reaching over to press the end of the vibrating dildo deeper onto the sweet spot and twisted it around a little, letting the toy wriggle around in the boy, the vibration hitting every corner of the inner muscles. That movement totally did Draco in as he came hard from his insides being assaulted by the wondrous sex tool, screaming a long stream of ‘Fuck’ along the way. Remus drank in every drop, savouring the taste that he missed so much as he pumped himself. Moments later, he came as well, moaning ecstatically, in which Draco quickly leaned down to lick it clean off the cum.

            “OK…” Draco panted as he winced, his spot feeling very spent right now and pain from the bruises started to kick in once the ecstasy of coming started to subside, but not entirely gone. “The dildo can come out now.”

            Remus whispered “ _Halt_ ” to the dildo and it stopped vibrating as soon as it started. He carefully laid the boy back on his stomach and took the toy out, taking care not to brush it against his baby blues so much and smiled satisfied to both himself and Draco.

            “That was something new. We should try it again sometime. You want to keep this? I’m sure Master won’t miss it that much.”

            “Yes, most definitely,” Draco smiled in the afterglow.

            “I’ll help you keep it. You look tired. Wanna rest up for the day?”

            “We barely even got up!” Draco laughed as he watched Remus hid the dildo underneath the underwear in the underwear drawer. “I bet we totally missed breakfast! But, sure, why not? Good excuse for me not to study today.”

            “Good. I’ll wake you when lunch’s ready.”

            “No, I want you to sleep with me.”

            Draco already rolled on his side and had his hands held open for Remus, waiting for him to join him to bed.

            Who was he to refuse?


	30. Chapter 30

            Hagrid continued following behind Severus in his quest, munching a rock cake along the way. Severus could hear the sound of the rock cake crunching and crackling between his teeth as the half-giant chewed and munched while enjoying the sights and tried to walk a little faster to distance themselves—hoping that he could lose him at the same time—but the half-giant, what with his sort of ‘bird’s eye view’ and tracking system because of his giant blood, he quickly sensed that Severus was at a inconsiderable distance from him and immediately caught up with him with just three strides of his wide footsteps, his munching and chewing noises following suite.

            Severus sighed. Hagrid was following him everywhere like a huge conspicuous shadow, and there was no shaking him off, no matter how Severus threatened or shooed or tried to escape. He had tried several attempts of losing him by getting up way earlier than him and sneak out of the hotel they were staying, only to be chased after like an escaped convict by the breathless half-giant, nagging behind him for leaving him behind and not waking him up sooner. He had tried mingling and blending in with the crowd so that he wouldn’t see and that he would be rid of him, but Hagrid’s height served him painfully well as he spotted him almost immediately, what with Severus having a habit of wearing dark, conservative clothes even while touring around the Muggle world, making him stick out like a sore thumb for Hagrid to see. It was like bringing along a big baby who wanted his daddy 24-7 or having a disease that just won’t go away. His presence was made even grudgingly worse when the half-giant seemed to find it amusing to let Severus know at the last minute after roaming around in Germany for almost one month that he knew people who had Portkeys at certain areas so that it would take them to their destination a little faster.

            But in all honest truth, he would not say that he did not like the company entirely; having someone to talk to, or there lack of, was better than musing about with a face that looked like everyone owed you a million Galleons. With Hagrid around, at least he felt a little bit compensated for his having to be so lonely separated from his dear little pet for so long. His long-winded chattering, which was just as bad as Albus’ talkative nature, was the only thing that kept him sane and guide him to the right path without doing something stupid out of desperation to fulfill the deal of the slaver manager Mr. Jefferson Underhill. Besides, when they came across mean-looking thugs or robbers who wanted to cause trouble and steal him of his valuables, Hagrid proved to be a good bodyguard rather than having Severus causing uproar of revealing his identity as a wizard. Hagrid’s connections into looking for the contacts that possessed those Portkeys also made their journey a little more bearable than before. Thanks to Hagrid, they actually managed to locate a witch, who was a half-succubus from her father’s side, who owned a Jack Skellington live-size doll that served as a Portkey to take them to Austria and closer to their destination. He secretly thanked Albus for sending Hagrid after him and would’ve done the same to Hagrid, if he weren’t munching behind him so irritably noisy, literally killing off the grateful mood.

            “Wanna rock cake, S’vrus?” Hagrid suddenly asked.

            “No, thank you,” Severus replied dourly.

            “C’mon. It tastes good,” Hagrid probed as he offered one to Severus.

            Severus took it, threw it on the ground without a moment’s notice, and kept walking. _I’d rather keep my teeth intact, thank you very much,_ he thought to himself.

            “Aww, S’vrus!” Hagrid exclaimed in annoyance before running to pick up the cake, scraping and blowing away the dirt before putting it back into his duffel bag. “D’ya hafta be so uptigh’?”

            “Yes, I have a reputation to uphold. And that doesn’t include associating with giants and sacrificing their teeth for mere junk food.”

            “Ya know, fer a guy who so lovesick tha’ ye willin’ tuh risk yer neck fer a common slave, ye sure ar’ a walkin’ contradiction.”

            “Well, I never wanted you following me around like a lost canine and you are annoying the shit out of me. So please do me a favour and go away.”

            “Canna help it now, can I?” Hagrid scowled as he pocketed his half-eaten rock cake into his duffel bag. “Unbr’kable Vow, remember? ‘Sides, if it wern fer me, ye migh’ still be back in ‘em German-ee runnin’ ‘round in circles. I wuz jus’ bein’ friendly, neways. Wat’s yer poison?”

            “I just want to get this over and go back to my Harry, that’s all I’m asking,” Severus sighed, tired of wasting his breath arguing with him for the umpteenth time.

            After smiling good-naturedly at some curious passers-by ogling at his massive size, he turned to ask Severus again, “I'm jus’ curious tho’. Wat exactly ye see in tha’ boy?”

            “He is special,” Severus replied after a moment’s silence. “You can’t pick your love; it just happens.”

            “I wunner wat he sees in ye,” Hagrid asked in a joking tone, receiving a death glare from the Potions Master.

            “I really don’t know. My last love saw only a Master.”

            “Ah, tha’ one, aye?” Hagrid asked. He briefly remembered during a school function, he saw a green-eyed young man who was almost in his 20’s following waist to waist beside Severus wearing some sort of greenish-silver collar and was looking at everyone with a feeling of reservation. He never asked of his name because he was too drunk with mead at the time, but the young man’s piercing green eyes were etched deep in his memory banks even though he only saw him once. “Tuh bad ye hafta let ‘im go. He’s a pretty lil’ thin’.”

            “He was, during those 16 years of my life, my one and only. I never thought I could get over it and love someone else just as much as I loved him, but I do now.”

            “I guess it's like ye says: it jus’ happens. But s’riously, S’vrus, wat made ye so attracted tuh him? Wat did he do tuh make ye so…smitt’n?”

            “His eyes,” Severus replied briefly.

            “Eyes?” Hagrid echoed.

            “Yes, that is what made me buy him. His green eyes.”

            “Green eyes? Ye bought ‘im jus’ coz he has green eyes?” Hagrid raised an eyebrow. “Dere’s gotta be more than tha’.”

            “I bought him for that at first,” Severus said, then smiled inwardly, “but it changed to something much more.”

            “Aha! So do tell ol’ Hagrid ‘ere,” Hagrid grinned and egged him on with a light nudge at his shoulders, eyeing him with interest.

            “His trust, his body, his smile, everything,” Severus allowed himself to smile in the open as he reminiscence every detail his pet had that made him so head over heels for him. “There is trait after trait for me to love. Even his pout and anger.”

            “Oh ho ho…” Hagrid guffawed, then flashed Severus a naughty grin, saying, “Our Ice Prince of ‘ogwarts ‘av finally melted, aye?”

            “Yes, yes, I have. Whatever,” Severus waved him off, trying hard not to blush. “Let it get out and your animals will suffer.”

            “Dinna worry, S’vrus, yer secrets safe wi’ me. Ev’n Minerva, who helped seal tha’ Unbr’kable Vow dunno wat yer reli out ‘ere fer n why I hafta protect ye.”

            Severus groaned. Not only had he involved a stupid huge oaf to make such detrimental vow over his own life, he even made an old hag seal the deal. No wonder life in Hogwarts have been in shambles and no wonder the Ministry of Magic was always finding ways to debunk the old man from his seat in the office.

            “They should be arrested for attempted murder and endangering the life of an innocent bystander. Now I really hate that man.”

            “Why?” Hagrid asked, not sure why Severus would want to make a fuss about Albus looking out for him. “He’s da one who sent me outta concern fer yer safety. If ‘e dinna care, ye woulda be dead righ’ ‘bout now ‘fore ye ev’n got tha’ eye.”

            “You don’t know that.”

            “Maybe, but tha’ dinna change tha’ Dumble cares ‘bout ye. ‘Sides, I vows tuh be Dumble’s loyal servant n I did it of my own free will.”

            “Fine!” Severus snapped at the half-giant, getting a little frustrated that this bickering was going nowhere. “Go lick his boots and jump off the cliff for him if you want to serve him so much! How about you shut up for an hour while I try to figure it out how to find that other stupid Portkey owner of yours?”

            “Alrigh’, alrigh’,” Hagrid rolled his eyes and took out his rock cake to munch again, muttering, “Summat’s woken on tha’ wrong side o’ tha’ bed today…”

            While Severus sighed in relief that he had a moment to think of which route to take next or which person to ask to look for their next contact, Hagrid was enjoying the sights. Soon, he whipped out an old worn camera given by Albus and took pictures of the place. It was one of those cameras that required a flash of a bulb because electronic devices go haywire in the magic world due to the differences in nature and wavelength, but it was functional, and the half-giant was happy to be able to just use it.

            “Oh ho ho, wait till Ron and Mione sees this,” Hagrid grinned happily. “They’ll be flippin' dere gourds.”

            “I thought I said be quiet,” Severus growled, annoyed that his train of thought was disrupted by Hagrid.

            “It ain't no crime talkin' to meself now, innit?” Hagrid gave him a sarcastic sideways glance.

            Shaking his head in dismay, he walked faster to leave some more space between them to navigate and plan his next course of action while Hagrid, keeping Severus within eyeshot, continued to take photos.

            This was going to be one hell of a long journey still.


	31. Chapter 31

            “You missed a bit of a spot right here, cute thing.”

            Harry pouted as he scrubbed the part where Moaning Myrtle was pointing. She giggled and carried on chatting about the days when she was alive, which wasn’t that glorious, but bearable all the same. Harry responded to her story with either his facial expression or his mono-syllable words or a laugh, depending on the situation. Despite the fact that he could already speak in considerable complete sentences, he still preferred keeping quiet and let his actions speak for itself, lest he said the wrong thing to anyone. The ghost girl didn’t mind. In fact, she continued on telling enthusiastically about how she was constantly bullied for her plain looks and being the butt end of the joke, and told him about her death that was caused by a joke went bad on her when the girls who picked on her went a little too far in giving her the daily dunking into the toilet sink and accidentally drowning her. Harry couldn’t hold her or touch her to express his condolences, so he had to rely on giving her the “I’m so sorry” look, in which the ghost girl accepted wholeheartedly.

            Semester break felt like forever since the first day Severus was gone and left him under the care of Albus Dumbledore. Despite knowing that Severus’ departure was inevitable, he couldn’t help bawling when he woke up on that fateful day to find Severus was no longer sleeping by his side. It took an hour and a half of coaxing from Albus’ part and a trip down to Hogsmeade with Ron and Hermione to finally make him distracted and accept that Severus was going to be missing in his life yet again for a long while. A week after Severus left, he received a letter from him courtesy of Hedwig, and with the help of Hermione and Ron reading the harder words, he read of the journey and the updates he had while he was on his quest, and giggled when Severus mentioned dourly about the presence of Hagrid following him around like some stalker. Since then, every other week, Hedwig would dutifully send him letters of his progress and Harry would reply him with his limited vocabulary and slightly scrawny writing about how he was doing in Hogwarts, with doodles to illustrate his letters.

            There was not much chores since most of the students except the ones sitting for O.W.L went back home for the semester break, so most of the time, when Harry was not required to do any chores, he would spend most of his time musing around the Astrology Tower where he could get a clear view of the school entrance, sitting there and staring out into the horizon, hoping that he would get Severus’ letter for the week and hoping to finally see Severus coming through that entrance, regardless if he succeeded in his quest or not. Sometimes, Hermione and Ron would come up to accompany him whenever they wanted to take a break from cramming their heads in books while giving him new books to read and write, but most of the time, he would be up there alone, and this routine continued even when semester break was over and school term has started, although much less now that school life has returned to normal and chores returned to keep him busy.

            As he continued cleaning the prefect’s bathroom while listening to Moaning Myrtle’s chatter, Draco just so happened to pass by. He was actually on his way to History class but seeing Harry in there, he stopped. Telling his goons to go without him, he entered the bathroom and smiled at the young boy.

            “Hey, Harry.”

            “Hi, Draco,” Harry smiled back and waved goodbye to Moaning Myrtle when she felt that three was a crowd and left through one of the toilet bowls. No matter how much Draco corrected him, Harry continued to pronounce his name as ‘Drah-ko’ instead ‘Dray-ko’, until Draco finally got tired of correcting him and allowed him to call him whatever he wanted.

            “How are you? I have not seen you lately.”

            “I…I OK…” Harry replied, still feeling a little bit sad about Severus’ absence.

            “How have you been, really?” Draco probed with a smile as he petted Harry’s head.

            “I…I miss Master…” Harry admitted sadly.

            “I miss Uncle Sev too, but you know he had to do what he had to do.”

            Harry nodded. He knew he was right, but it was still painful to accept that his beloved Master is risking his life for him or that the possibility of him returning alive was rather low. Draco gave him another comforting pat on the head before sitting next to him on the bathtub edge, wincing slightly as the bruise was still giving him problems. Sometimes in class, he would empty out his bag so that he could have a makeshift cushion for his butt whenever he sat for classes, but most of the time, in order not to let others find out, he would sit with his butt a few inches away from the seat and cast a freezing spell on his legs so that he wouldn’t get achy muscles, though the downside was that once he took the spell off his legs they would forget how to move and he needed his goons to support him before he could finally feel them again.

            “You OK, Draco?” Harry asked as he noticed the pained face Draco made.

            “Yeah fine. Went up against an ass and lost.”

            Harry giggled at the statement Draco made and then asked, “You no have class?”

            “It’s just History. I’ll live,” Draco replied with a shrug. He had blown the class off more times than he cared to mention. He didn’t think the ghostly Prof. Binns would even notice anyone falling asleep in his class, let alone skipping it. He barely even knew that he was already dead as he did his daily classes droning on and on as if it was the most natural thing to do. Besides, Draco had read the History book on his own inside out and practically knew everything with the back of his palm.

            “Remy OK?”

            “Yeah, running his legs off, but good.”

            At that very moment, while Harry and Draco continued to chatter on merrily, Ron and Hermione had just finished their Transfiguration class and happen to pass by the bathroom. Ron told Hermione to wait for him as his nature called and was shocked to see the two together talking like old friends. His urge to pee forgotten, he stomped towards Draco with an angered face almost as red as his hair.

            “Oy, Malfoy! What are you doing here?” Ron demanded loudly, shocking the duo, but Draco immediately regained composure. He got up, biting his lip to prevent himself from wincing and glowered at the redhead.

            “This is a bathroom, Weasel, what do you think?”

            “Then go piss or whatever and leave our friend alone!” Ron scolded, then took Harry’s hand. “And you, Har. You know better than to associate with a lousy Slytherin like him. C’mere!”

            “No!” Harry pulled away, giving Draco a “Help me” look.

            “Leave him alone!” Draco pulled Harry against him. “If he wants to stay he will.”

            “Since when are you friends with slaves, Malfoy?!” Ron tried to reach for Harry but was shoved away by the blonde. “I know you well enough not to!”

            “How little you know, Weasel!”

            “No! No fight, please!” Harry begged. He had seen many fights, but a fight between friends was something he liked the least.

            “Ron, Malfoy, stop,” Hermione, her duty as School Prefect kicking in, came into the bathroom regardless it being the boy’s bathroom and stood between them, barring them from getting at each other’s throat. She turned to Harry and asked, “Harry, are you friends with him?”

            Harry nodded timidly.

            “How could you?!” Ron exclaimed in distraught and disbelief, ranting and raving like a madman. “How could you do this to us, Har? _We’re_ your friends, not him! No one makes friends with Slytherins, especially no Golden Boy here!”

            “Hey, I knew him before you, dumb ass!” Draco wanted to lunge forward but both Hermione and Harry held him back.

            “Yeah, right, like anything that comes out of your mouth is true, Mommy’s Boy!” Ron sneered, then turned to Harry just to make sure, “Is that true, Har?”

            Harry nodded, “Master is Draco’s family.”

            “Prof. Snape is my godfather,” Draco declared.

            “Humph! Figures,” Ron looked grudgingly at Draco. “No wonder he treats you as if he’s in love with you or something.”

            “Draco very nice person. He very nice to me,” Harry pouted, feeling annoyed that Ron did not believe him.

            “The sky would be raining fireballs by the time he’s nice to anyone, Har!”

            “Ask my slave that,” Draco retorted, flipping him the bird and stuck his tongue out at him.

            “Why you…” Ron was clearly offended at that gesture as he lunged over to punch him. Hermione wanted to hold him back but Harry beat her to it as he ran forward to block him, guarding Draco from being hit. Ron wasn’t able to stop his punch, but he managed to hold back a little so that Harry only got a scrape on his cheek from Ron’s knuckles. Draco, seeing from his point of view and thinking that Ron had hurt his godfather’s beloved, brandished his wand and shouted a spell to shove Ron across the room until he rammed against the wall. Ron wanted to return the favour but Harry quickly jumped onto Ron, using his weight to hold the redhead down before he could do anything with his wand on his blonde friend.

            “No! No fight! No hurt Draco! Draco is nice person. He tell Master what to do to free me. He give me book to read. Draco is nice person. No hurt him!”

            “G…Get off me, Har! Bloody hell, I won’t believe that…”

            “You heard him, Weasel,” Draco said as he kept his wand while Hermione tried to pick Harry up and off her fiancé. “I am not hurting him or whatever you think in that red hot mind of yours. When has that boy ever lied to anyone of you?”

            Ron was a little speechless, not sure what to retaliate. He hated to admit that Draco was right; Harry had never lied to them since the day they knew him. He was the most honest—probably the only honest—soul they have ever met in Hogwarts. Even Luna Lovegood, their little odd acquaintance wasn’t as honest as little Harry could ever be. Seeing Ron grudgingly put his wand away and patted the dust off his robes, Harry quickly tottered back to Draco and hid behind him, gripping his sleeves tight. Draco patted his hands, reassuring him that nothing will happen while he was around. Seeing the trust they had between them, Hermione sighed and went over to Harry, petting his unruly mop of ebony-black hair.

            “It’s OK, Harry. If you trust him…" Hermione’s voice wavered a little as she continued, “then we will.”

            “Mione!” Ron exclaimed, looking at his fiancé in disbelief.

            “Harry has a good judge of character, Ron,” Hermione noted. “Remember Cho Chang, Luna Lovegood, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Oliver Wood, Cedric Diggory and all the other friends we had that we thought before was trouble? Who got them to be so tight with us now? And don’t forget that it was because of Harry being close to Prof. Slughorn because he knew his mother that now he is giving us pretty good marks so far _and_ not to mention…”

            “Alright, alright, I get the idea, Mione! But…Mione, it’s Malfoy we’re talking about here!”

            “Yes, I know that, Ron, but I didn’t say we were going to call him friend," she said, still hurt about being calling Mudblood during their 3rd year. "I said ‘trust’.”

            Ron glared long and hard at Draco again, but seeing Harry behind him begging with pleading eyes, he finally sighed and said, “Alright, Har. We trust your judgment, BUT,” Ron stressed, pointing an accusing finger at Draco, “That doesn’t mean we’re all hanky-panky and hunky-dory friends now, you hear?!”

            “Fine by me,” Draco shrugged nonchalantly. “Though I don’t know what Granger sees in you anyway.”

            “And you, Malfoy!” Ron growled, his face flushed red with shyness and anger, “If I hear you or your father dare make him lose even one hair on his body, I don't care if I break any laws, I _will_ use all three Unforgivable Curses on you!” he took Hermione’s hand and said aloud, “C’mon, Mione! We’ve wasted enough breath with that pretty boy! I’ll go answer nature’s call somewhere else rather than here.”

            “Hey, I am not my father’s keeper!” Draco yelled, offended by that remark. “I can’t even make him keep his hands off my lover!!”

            “Your lover?” Ron blinked in disbelief as he stopped in his tracks, looking at Draco like he had just announced that he was next in line for the Headmaster’s seat or something. “Since when do you have a lover? I thought you shagged everyone around, that slutty Parkinson included.”

            Draco blinked for a moment there, not sure what to reply and taken aback at his own sudden outburst. He never thought he would’ve said it; it just came out. Harry understood what he meant, but was worried when he heard Draco’s father had done something to his friend. Slowly, Draco looked down, tears in his eyes. He clearly wanted to tell his predicament to someone else; he had been bottling this pain up for so long that his heart couldn’t take it anymore, thus the outburst. He just didn’t think the person he would confide to was his two worst enemies.

            “I don’t want to talk about it.”

            Ron was not blind not to notice the tears threatening to pour out of the blonde’s eyes. Somehow, despite the fact that he still thought Draco was a downright foul git, he couldn’t help feeling sorry for him now that he had allowed his mind and heart to open for the blonde just a little bit for the sake of Harry. He looked at Hermione for a while for a second opinion. Hermione shrugged, giving him an “It wouldn’t hurt to talk” look, and Ron sighed in defeat before sitting in front of him.

            “You’ve blurted it out, Malfoy, so you might as well tell all. You want us to trust you with Har now, don’t you?”

            Draco, seeing that the Old Married Couple of Hogwarts were genuinely curious about his situation, sat back down (wincing slightly as he did), hastily brushed his tears away and explained, “I have a sex slave named Remus Lupin. But he is not a slave to me.”

            “Remy my friend too,” Harry smiled as he pointed to himself.

            “Ah, so this Remus Lupin is actually your lover and is Har’s colleague,” Ron nodded in understanding.

            “Yes. He was once my Father’s sex slave, then he was given to me as my 15th birthday present. For that better part of the year he has stopped touching him, but last week…" Draco took a breath before continuing, “He…he touch him.”

            “He’s public property,” Ron’s tone did not sound too surprised. “You can’t deny that. It’s the law.”

            “You wanna bet?” Draco asked grudgingly. “Have you seen my father showing up in school since then? He’s been using ice on his nose since I’ve showed him a thing or two.”

            Ron’s eyes widened as he pieced the two and two together, “Bloody hell, Malfoy! You don’t mean you socked your old man now, do you?”

            “Goodness, Malfoy, you really shouldn’t,” Hermione commented, equally surprised that Draco would do such a thing.

            “I don’t care. He hurt my lover, so I will hurt him. Simple as that.”

            “That why you butt have boo-boo?” Harry asked, then stated in a matter-of-fact way when Draco gave him a shocked look, “I can tell.”

            “Well…a cane is not only for walking,” Draco blushed, muttering as he looked down in embarrassment.

            “Ouch!” Ron winced, experiencing sympathy pains. “Does he realize how old are you already to still be caned?”

            “If I disappoint him he would still cane me at age 30.”

            “You boo-boo OK now?” Harry asked, concerned.

            “Getting better. Still sore but no longer black.”

            “Hmm,” Ron considered for a while, then turned to Hermione, “Hey, Mione, you still got that insta-cure cream you bought in Hogsmeade to treat my bruises for Quidditch?”

            “Yeah, I do,” Hermione said as she dug her bag and took it out, handing it to Draco, “Here you go.”

            “You shouldn’t have,” Draco replied. “My Remus already has an age-old remedy for my bruises.”

            “It’s alright. You can have it. I have a whole lot more of those silly tubes back in the common room. You don’t wanna know how much I have to use it on him for just for one training session.”

            “Not my fault those balls kept aiming at my face whenever I try to block them from the goal,” Ron muttered.

            “Thanks, Granger,” Draco replied as he accepted the tube of insta-cure cream and pocketed it into his robes.

            “Yayy! Draco no more boo-boo!” Harry clapped his hands with glee, happy to see that Draco was going to get a cure for his bruised butt.

            “Gods, Har. Look what you made us do,” Ron chuckled in defeat as he noticed the atmosphere they were in, “We’re actually talking like regular friends.”

            “He can do that to people,” Draco ruffled Harry’s hair as the younger boy flashed everyone a toothy grin. “And judging by what Granger said about Harry having a good judgment of character and bringing the most unlikely friends together, I suspect that probably it could be his true magic at work.”

            “He’s an interesting kid alright. I heard from Dumbledore one night after his speech lessons that his parents used to be star pupils here in Hogwarts.”

            “Yes. That is one of the reasons that Harry is in great demand. I heard my father talking to someone that Harry is the perfect slave. A child of stars that fell.”

            Ron rolled his eyes, “Typical sadists. And another time, Dumbledore said his parents were killed by this crazy psycho wizard Tom Riddle for ratting on him and his crimes. Is that true?”

            “Again, true,” Draco nodded, while Harry sat there listening to the conversation, trying to pick up and learn some new words at the same time.

            “I've run through some old newspapers,” Hermione said, her studious mind reeling, “and they said that their only son survived barely in the assassination. So it’s Har they’re talking about.”

            “Yup, but he soon disappeared from sight, until Uncle Sev found and bought Harry from the business and Father went and researched about him. Now everyone in our community or those old timers who used to know Harry’s parents knew that Harry’s their son, and I’ve found out from Father’s drinking buddies when they came for an occasional visit that they would pay a king’s ransom just to take Harry off Uncle Sev’s hand and have him for their own. Just last year, during my birthday party, Sirius Black who used to be friends with Harry’s parents tried to make a pass at him, but Uncle Sev threatened to amputate his hand off if ever he dare lay a finger on him. Uncle Sev can be so possessive sometimes.”

            “But he didn’t disappear from sight. According to the newspaper, three months after murdering Harry’s parents and almost murdering Harry, he was arrested and been locked in Azkaban ever since.”

            “I meant Harry disappearing from sight after the assassination, Granger, not the mad man. No one knew what happened in between the years after the assassination and before he was sent into the business.”

            “Don’t mind her. She gets ahead of herself sometimes. It comes with the territory of dating a smart-alec.”

            That comment earned Ron a slap on the shoulder by the said ‘smart-alec’ and tiny peals of laughter by Harry.

            “Don't worry,” Draco smiled at their antics, seeing the true meaning of their nickname as ‘The Old Married Couple of Hogwarts’. “I hardly listen anyway.”

            “What exactly is this psycho guy anyway? Why did he go around killing people for no particular reason?”

            “What I've read in a book called ‘Villainous Villains’,” Hermione’s trait as a Human Encyclopedia kicked in, “this Tom Riddle guy is a Half-Blood. According to a thorough background research and numerous interviews on many involved parties by the person who wrote this book, his mother was a witch and was a little crazy in the head because of their family’s tendency to promote in-breeding for pure-blood purposes. You know, like how Egyptians usually do within the royal families. She herself was a cold-blooded killer who poisoned her own family and ran off pretending to be a prostitute and killing people for their money. She met the Muggle father in one of her killing attempts but was so smitten by his looks, she became his stalker instead. You can say that she sorta ‘raped’ him one night when she put him under the Imperius curse and got herself knocked up with Tom.”

            “Damn. She knows more than my father,” Draco commented, suppressing his impressed tone.

            “Unlike you boys, I actually read,” Hermione folded her arms across her chest.

            “Like I said, smart-alec,” Ron rolled his eyes, getting slapped again on the shoulder. “Ow! Will you cut it out, Mione?!”

            Harry roll on the floor laughing at their antics. No matter how many times he saw them bicker with each other, they never failed to amuse him.

            “Ha ha,” Ron grumbled sarcastically. “Not funny, Har.”

            “Sorry, but I have to agree with Harry on that one,” Draco tried to hold back his chuckle, earning a challenging glare from Ron.

            “Anyway, Dumbledore showed me Tom’s past in the Penseive when it was my turn to send Harry off after speech lessons. He said it was a sort of gift for helping Harry so much on his communication skills. Anyway, what I saw was that Tom Riddle’s mother gave birth to him at Azkaban within the prison walls when she was finally arrested for murdering an Auror who was in the Muggle world investigating on a case. Her killing spree was enough to earn her the Dementor’s Kiss, but since she was pregnant, they decided to let her carry to term and give birth before giving it to her. They traced Tom’s Muggle father and made him take Tom in, in which the father abused him everyday. Finally, driven by madness, Tom poisoned him like his mother did to her family. A traveling warlock found him living in the Muggle streets and took him in. As soon as he came of age, he poisoned the poor warlock like he did his father and inherited his fortune, and became a legitimate wizard ever since. It seems that his mother’s cold blood ran in his veins and he had a deep hatred for any wizards or witches that were not pure because of his own damned half-blood. Har’s parents witnessed one of his murders and helped the Aurors track him down, and the rest was history.”

            “How come _you_ get to look into the Pensieve??” Ron exclaimed. “Not fair!”

            “Because she’s smart, Weasley, that’s why,” Draco said, then turned to Harry and said sympathetically, “It seems everyone is out to get you, Harry.”

            “Why say that?” Harry asked curiously.

            “Never mind, forget I said it,” Draco shook his head and petted Harry’s head. It was obvious that all this mature talk was still a little incomprehensible for the boy and Draco thought it best that he was left ignorant of his past.

            “At least Snape’s doing something about getting him outta the dumps,” Ron commented.

            “Yes, that I agree,” Draco sighed, still wishing that Remus would let him do the same.

            “Master say he might die doing it,” Harry whimpered, thinking about his beloved out there, not knowing what misfortune may have befallen him.

            “Now you dunno that, lad,” Ron tried to persuade Harry otherwise.

            “It is true, in a way,” Draco replied. “In order to set a slave free you have to do a dangerous task to retrieve the payment for them. Remus said back then, they asked a Master to bring them a rare dragon egg. The Master died just half way on his trip.”

            “Ouch…” Ron winced as another sympathy pain hit him. “That’s a bad way to go.”

            “No wonder no one has ever heard of slaves being free or have any record of it,” Hermione noted. “The process itself is too ridiculous.”

            “Yes it is,” Draco agreed. “But it is worth it to Masters who love their slaves, trust me.”

            “I no want Master to die…” Harry whined in the brink of tears.

            “He won’t. If I know Uncle Sev, he will do everything to win and at worst he may be burned a bit but nothing a potion of spell cannot fix,” Draco tried to smile to make the situation better than it sounded.

            “I no want him burn either…”

            “Oh, Harry,” Hermione reached over to hug him. “Prof. Snape’ll be alright. You’ll see. I’m sure of it.”

            “I agree,” Ron chided in. “Did you know that Seamus and Dean blew up the lab once because they put the wrong ingredient for the Revival Potion during the 4th year? Caused almost everyone to slip into a coma for a week, and yet Snape managed to walk around unscathed because he drank a counter-potion beforehand and managed to send them to a month’s detention as soon as they woke up. If he can survive that, I’m sure he’ll survive this.”

            “Yeah,” Draco confirmed his words, “he is untouchable, Harry. Don’t worry.”

            “OK…” Harry replied as he allowed Hermione to dry his tears. “If you say so…”

            “I know so, by the way, Weasley,” Draco turned to the redhead. “Weren’t you going to answer nature’s call?”

            Ron’s full bladder immediately kicked in and was soon seen dashing into one of the cubicles to relieve himself, with Hermione rolling her eyes and sighing in defeat, Draco grinning naughtily from ear to ear and Harry rolling on the floor laughing again.


	32. Chapter 32

            The weekend had finally arrived and the first thing Draco did as soon as he got home from school was to go and find Remus at once. Thanks to the insta-cure cream that Hermione had given him, his butt was getting better by the minute, and he could finally sit properly without having to wince all the time or sitting on his makeshift ‘cushion’ or hover his ass a few inches off the chairs without being able to feel his legs later, though the marks of the caning and the soreness that followed had not entirely subsided. Even Ron would also sometimes sneak him some mild painkillers into his bag that he got from his mother for his pains and gave him some of his unwanted sweaters to put in his bag whenever the blonde needed to use his makeshift ‘cushion’ so that he could sit down better.

            And speaking of Hermione and Ron, he and the Old Married Couple of Hogwarts have come to an agreeable understanding. Even though they had to put up a front of being life-long enemies due to the fact that they are both in Slytherin and Gryffindor, in private, they were at least in speaking terms, and instead of getting at each other’s necks and throats all the time and trying to punch each other’s lights out, they managed to behave at least in a slightly civilized manner. Whenever it was time for Harry’s lessons, instead of having only the duo or only Draco teaching them, the three of them would meet up at Hagrid’s hut—the half-giant gave Hermione and Ron permission to look after his hut and clean up for him once in a while and feed his boarhound Fang while he was away—in which they would teach Harry something: Ron teaching how to write, Hermione teaching how to associate words with items through picture cards and Draco teaching him how to read and pronounce words properly. Their joint effort made Harry’s lesson a lot smoother and the boy learning more words to read, speak and write. Occasionally, they would also teach him simple spells to recite and Draco gave Harry his own baby trainer wand to learn his spells on. Harry was happy to learn them, and proved to be quite a whiz in spells (although he had a little bit of problem pronouncing them), possibly because of his heritage, and the trio couldn’t help thinking that if Harry were the same age as they were and studying in Hogwarts alongside with them, he would’ve aced school life with a breeze. Harry, on the other hand, only had one thought in mind: Severus buying a new proper wand for him.

            But all those happenings pale in comparison as to his dire need to be filled by Remus’ glory after finally being rid of the irritation on his butt that prevented him from getting what he wanted.

            Remus was at the vegetable and fruit garden in the backyard picking strawberries for tonight’s light snack for Narcissa’s Secret Wives’ Club meeting as it was her turn to host the club meeting at her home. He had expected Draco to come later in the day or probably not come at all due to the closeness of his exams, but seeing him arrive cheered him up all the same.

            “Hey there, Drake,” Remus greeted as soon as the boy went over to him, only to suddenly see him kneeling down in front of him and reaching over to kiss him soundly. He dropped the strawberries he was picking by surprise at first, but soon kissed him back just as badly. They would’ve gone at it forever if their lungs were not protesting for air. They both quickly pulled out to take a breather.

            “Well, someone’s in a good mood today,” Remus grinned at him, chuckling at the colours showing on the boy’s fair cheeks.

            “I missed you,” Draco said as he hugged him. “How was your week? Has Father come to you again?”

            “Tried to on the first day you left, but Nightwing just so happen to fly to him calling him to the Ministry for a meeting, and when he came back from the meeting, he announced to the household that he would be off on a sort of field trip with some Aurors, so he let me off for that whole week. Now, what seems to be the good news that got you in such a good mood today?”

            “Well, I wouldn’t say it’s entirely good news. I just wanted to see you. Actually, I became…well not really friends, but I guess I gained the trust of a couple of Gryffindors.”

            “Really? That’s impressive. My little Drakey-poo finally has some real friends,” Remus said in a mock cute voice as he pinched Draco’s nose in a teasing manner.

            “Thanks,” Draco rolled his eyes sarcastically, then took Remus’ hand and continued, “Remus, I want to free you. Maybe not right now but after I graduate from school, I will embark on the same quest Uncle Sev is doing right now and I will free you.”

            “Drake,” Remus held onto Draco’s shoulders and said in a stern tone, “I’ve told you once, I’ve told you before and I’ll tell you again, _no_.”

            “I will, and I won’t take no for an answer. I am not going to let Father hurt you again. No,” Draco stopped the half-werewolf before he could retaliate by cupping his cheeks. “Not after the last time we tried to get down. You didn’t enjoy it. You may have satisfied me, but I could tell from your eyes that you couldn’t bring yourself to enjoy it, that you are still haunted by my father’s actions.”

            “Have you not heard all the dangers I’ve told you? One master died getting a dragon’s egg. One got mauled by a griffin trying to get its feather and died of gangrene. One drowned while trying to get the Loch Ness’ tooth. One turned into a werewolf when he tried to get a lock of fur from it and was shot to death by a Muggle hunter. No. I will not allow you to send yourself to your death.”

            “And let Father rape you every time he feels like? Hell no. It is either that or I kill him.”

            Remus’ mind wrestled with the thought. He could allow Draco to kill Lucius, but it would leave a bad stain in his conscience and there’s no telling whether he could get away with it, no matter how many connections the Malfoy family had. On the other hand, letting him go on the quest Severus did would mean certain death. He did not deny that what Draco said about him still being haunted by what Lucius’ did to him was true—he felt it almost everyday since it happened. But to put his beloved in a situation where he could get in trouble at a moment’s notice was too hard for him to bear, even though he knew it was a necessary evil. Finally, Remus lowered his head in defeat.

            “I…I don’t know…”

            “Besides,” Draco noted, “even if we move out of this place and live somewhere else in the country, he could still come and find us. If we live abroad, others would take advantage of you because you’re a slave and are bound to the public property factor. I cannot allow that to happen.”

            “I…I know that but…” Remus struggled, still reluctant to agree that Draco’s decision was the best choice they’ve got.

            “Let’s do it together,” Draco suggested. “If something happens, maybe you can run.”

            “No,” Remus shook his head. “I will not run. I will not leave you alone in this. If you have to do this quest to free me, promise I can come with you.”

            “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

            With that, the boy leaned in, kissing him again. Remus kissed him back hungrily, his arms wrapped possessively around Draco. Mewling slightly into his mouth, Draco kissed just as hard, literally starving for Remus’ love. Soon, Remus could feel his whole body awakening, including the ones at his nether regions.

            “I…I’m sorry, Drake…I can’t hold back anymore,” Remus panted breathlessly, revealing his ‘excitement’.

            “Let’s go out farther into the backyard, like I said last time,” Draco got up, pulling Remus up. “I trust you promise that you would get us out if ever we were lost?”

            “Most definitely,” Remus chuckled as he followed Draco deeper into the backyard, leaving the strawberries behind. He couldn’t care less if his Mistress and her guests were waiting for their food; the hired help could do it for him. All he wanted was to forget about whatever happened between him and Lucius and give in to his primal urge and ravish his beloved. They went deep into the forest area at their backyard and only when Draco didn’t know the way back did he stop. Turing around, he started taking off his clothes.

            “Is your butt feeling alright?” Remus asked. “I’m sorry. You’ve been right all along. It’s been so long. I should’ve gotten over it a long time ago.”

            “It is fine, still a bit pink but some pain can add the pleasure I have heard,” Draco said, blushing and throwing his shirt down. He knelt down near the half-werewolf’s groin and continued, “Besides, if you had gotten over it so quickly, I will have to start questioning your feelings for me. Now for this round, you are the master. Tell me what you want me to do to you.”

            “Mm, I knew your new friends have lightened up your spirits. Alright, suck me. Suck me nice and good, but don’t use your hands to touch it. You can unzip me and take me out but after that, hands off the merchandize.”

            Draco smiled and nodded as he scooted forward and pulled Remus out. Putting his hand behind him, he started licking around the tip before he took it into his mouth, his head bobbing in and out as he sucked him.

            “Ooh, yes. Mmh, you’re getting so much better than before.”

            Draco responded by taking him further into his mouth, licking and sucking in turns and occasionally running his tongue down the veins of the cock and tickling the balls with the tip of his tongue, kissing them, his own cock throbbing against his pants. Remus noticed the bulge and tapped his blonde head to make him look up at him.

            “Touch yourself, Drake.”

            Draco mumbled in agreement and palmed his cock, rubbing it to make it even more rock hard.

            “Mmh…So good…” Remus sighed and put his hands on Draco’s head, threading his fingers around the blonde strands of hair. Soon an eager urge came to his mind. He made Draco look up at him and said, “I’m going to fuck your mouth.”

            Surprisingly, Draco did not hesitate. He nodded and tried to relax his throat, opening his mouth more so that he could take him all the way in. Remus moved nice and slow, thrusting into his mouth in a moderate pace, his heart hoping that he wouldn’t hurt him. Draco quickened his pace on his pants, whimpering as he reached into his pants to pump the throbbing length while he savoured the feeling of Remus’ cock hitting the back of his throat. Remus could feel himself coming close to the edge, but he didn’t want it to end so quickly without satisfying Draco as well. Hurriedly, he pulled out, earning a protest whine from the boy.

            “Go on all fours, Drake.”

            Draco obeyed and went down, pulling down his pants and sticking his ass out.

            “You still have some bruises, but they seemed to heal up nicely,” Remus lined his cock on the opening, getting ready to push it in. “The bruises are still going to sting, so bear with it.”

            “I don’t care,” Draco replied, even as it stung when Remus peeled open the cheeks a little to position his cock correctly. He went down on his elbows, his hands laying flat onto the grass beneath them. Soon Remus pushed in all the way to the hilt, then started a steady rhythm, expertly looking for the spot that’ll make his Young Master howl. Draco bit his lip at the slight pain at first, but as soon as Remus found that spot he was soon sent into the 7th Heaven, moaning “Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck” over and over again. Remus assaulted the spot repeatedly, ramming harder and deeper into him until he forced Draco’s top half of the body to literally sprawl on the grass.

            “Yes, yes, yes. Fuck me hard! Fuck me!!!” Draco more or less screamed.

            “Yes, yes, yes!!!” Remus slammed him hard, pummelling him to the ground, his superhuman strength kicking in as he gave in to the lust that was raging inside him for so long.

            “Remy…Remy…please…” Draco begged after being in that position for god knows how long, “I want to…ah, fuck…see you.”

            Remus grunted in reply and pulled out to flip him on his back in the missionary position before pushing himself in again, fucking him just as hard as before. Draco grabbed at the grass, pulling it from the roots as he was turned into a drooling, sweating mess, and loving every moment of it. Remus picked Draco’s legs up so it wraps around his hips just the way he liked it and fucked him even deeper and harder, assaulting the spot even more. A couple more thrusts later, Draco pulled him down to kiss him as he came, arching up against him. As Remus enjoyed the feeling of Draco’s muscles tightening around him while he continued fucking him, he felt something wrong, like he had forgotten something, but ignored it as he was coming close to pouring his seed into him, trying to hold it back to maximize the pleasure. Draco fell to the ground, panting as he let Remus have him.

            “I’m…I’m going to come, Drake,” Remus moaned, his voice sounded a little wolfish.

            Draco didn’t reply this time, his mind still slightly out of it.

            “Oh shi…” Remus’ words were caught halfway as he came long and hard into him. Draco sighed slowly as he was filled, always loving that part.

            As soon as he done coming, he felt his inside like it was tearing in and out, he quickly pulled out and hugged himself. His eyes widened in horror as he realized what he had forgotten. _No,_ his mind screamed. _Not today! Of all days, not today! Please!_

            “Drake…Run…” Remus begged, trying as hard as he could to hold back the inevitable.

            “What?” Draco noticed the change of atmosphere as he sat up. The cum was leaking out of him but he didn’t care. His concern right now was for Remus. “Remy, what’s going on?”

            “Please…Run…!” Remus pleaded, his breathing becoming ragged, willing himself to remain sane as he could feel the familiar transformation.

            “No, I will not leave you,” Draco knelt beside him, stubbornly refusing to leave.

            “You…don’t…understand…! I…” Remus felt the transformation kicking in. He grabbed the boy’s shoulders and pushed him away, shouting with his voice that was morphing into a bestial roar, “Leave, NOW!!!”.

            Draco jumped back but still would not leave him, not unless he knew what was going on. Remus began to howl as he transformed into the damned creature he was. He had been so careful not to transform in front of Draco. Even though it was no secret to Draco that he was a half-werewolf, he wanted Draco to have better images of him as a human than a cursed beast. Every 3 months, when intuition told him that he was about to transform, he would disappear out of sight as he let Lucius lead him to the coal cellar and be locked away for that whole day, and then come up with an excuse for his absence. How could he be so careless as to let his libido take control of his thought tank and forget about this important event? The last thought in his mind before the beast in him took control was a desperate prayer not to hurt Draco.

            Draco, on the other hand, started crawling away, realizing his idiocy as the monster took over his Remus. He knew Remus would transform every 3 months and even though Remus made up an excuse to explain his quarterly absence, he knew he had transformed and had probably helped his father run more grizzly errands for him or have been locked away for the safety of the household, but he never thought the day would come that he would actually witnessed Remus’ transformation firsthand. He had always been curious of how his Remus looked like in werewolf form, but now that he had seen it, he understood the full extent of the meaning ‘Curiosity killed the cat’. As soon as the wolf took over, it began sniffing around and soon smelt human blood in front of him. It saw Draco and rumbled in its throat as it moved closer to the blonde, its eyes a glowing gold as they spelt of mass shredding and spilling of blood to satisfy its hunger and lust for crimson red. Draco quickly got up and started to run but the wolf had the upper hand. It howled and chased after him. Without breaking a sweat, it soon caught up and pounced onto him like a predator would on prey. Draco let out a desperate cry as he went down, his face kissing the ground below.

            “Re…Remus…please, don’t…” Draco begged, his voice trembling like a leaf in the wind.

            Rumble after rumble escaping the wolf’s throat as it bared its fangs like a rabid dog at Draco. It then leaned over, smelling something familiar about the boy under it, sniffing all over. Draco closed his eyes as he could feel its wet nose roaming all over his body, knowing this was the end. He was going to be his lover’s dinner. The only thought that was running repeatedly like a broken record in his head was “Why, oh why, had I not just listened to Remy?!”

            Somehow, after a number of sniffing all over, which included his nether regions, the wolf’s instincts somehow told it that this boy was someone it shouldn’t hurt, someone who is dear to him. Its instinct told it that the little blonde boy it was standing on was its mate and shouldn’t have a single hair lost from his pretty little head under any circumstances. Slowly, it got off him and let out a dog purr, its hunger for blood forgotten. Draco, who was ready to die and become wolf food, frowned as he wondered why was he not done for yet. He sat up and saw the wolf sitting there obediently as if being told by a master to sit and eyeing him with almost an apologetic and concerned look.

            “Re…Remus…?” Draco voiced out slowly, only to get a faceful of wolf drool as the wolf purred and licked the boy’s face affectionately, like a wolf licking its mate. “Rem…Yuck!”

            The wolf responded by rubbing his head against Draco’s, making the boy giggle.

            “Good boy,” Draco said, petting him.

            The wolf sat back again, wagging its tail as it waited for any instructions Draco may give him, its mind slowly allowing its human side and its human love for Draco to surface.

            “You’re kinda cute,” Draco smiled, “when you’re not a chowhound.”

            The wolf looked up at the full moon and let out a soft howl—an inborn habit of being a werewolf.

            “Woah, you really do howl at the moon when you’re transformed. Guess those DADA textbooks were not kidding. I suppose our crazy libido has us forgetting it’s that time of the month again.”

            The wolf seemed to let out a lupine-like laugh. It then lowered its body next to Draco, gesturing him with a short jerk of its head to ride its back. Draco got up on his feet, getting on its back. The wolf got up and started walking, carrying him as if he weighed next to nothing while it navigated its way fluidly through the huge backyard with its great sense of direction and smell. Soon they were back where they originally were at the vegetable and fruit garden and were staring at the backdoor of the mansion. Draco, just realizing that he didn’t have his clothes on, blushed a healthy tint of red. He must’ve left it behind somewhere back there when he was trying to escape his werewolf beloved whom he thought was going to eat him alive. But he didn’t mind, and neither did the wolf notice him being naked anyway. He leaned down and nuzzled at the soft fur, enjoying the natural carpet feeling on his bare skin.

            “I hope Father is not home yet,” Draco said. “I hope his field trip goes on forever.”

            Without warning, the wolf sat down and leaned sideways, making the boy slide off his body, taking him by surprise. Quietly, it trotted to the place where the laundresses hanged the daily laundry and took down a white linen bed sheet and dropped it onto the boy’s body before making its way back to the backyard and back into the forest to wait out the transformation and return to human form.

            “Wait,” Draco called out, not understanding why his Remy was running off without him.

            The wolf just looked back, gave a soft dog rumble and trotted off, leaving Draco behind. It may have retained its human sanity for the moment, but its body was still werewolf, and there was no telling whether it could remain sane for long. If it were able to talk, it would’ve said to its mate that it had to stay away to keep him safe. Sadly, it continued to walk on, not looking back, leaving the poor blonde wrapped in the linen bed sheet in the dark.

            “Great. Just leave me alone right here,” Draco sighed and slowly made his way back into the house, taking care that there was no one around to see him in this state. Loud female chatters and laughter in the main lounge suggested that his mother and her friends were still on with the Secret Wives’ Club. He shook his head and quickly made his way back to his room, not wanting to know what exactly those women actually do in their activities in the Secret Wives’ Club.

            As soon as he was in his room, he laid on his bed, sighing as he thought of everything that had happened just now. So many things happening in such a short time since the end of semester break and beginning of the school term: hitting his dad and making him bleed for the first time ever in his whole life, getting caned for goodness knows how many times and earning him a sore butt, having new friends—or acquaintances as he called it—from the age-old enemy house Gryffindor and now seeing Remus for the first time ever in his werewolf form. He could tell that his life was going to get even more adventurous than before. Looking at his slightly soiled body, he knew he needed to take a shower, but he wanted to bask in the after math, even if Remus was not there with him. Closing his eyes and letting his fingers roam around his body, he tried to remember the feeling of Remus’ touches and the way they went down after such long weeks of abstinence, and the way Remus the werewolf’s soft fur was on his body like a big wooly outfit from head to toe.

            Unbeknownst to him, Lucius had already returned from his field trip and had just finished reading some paperwork sent in from the Ministry by owl in his study about the progress and the results of the field trip. He was about to go to the main lounge to check on his wife—and probably get the chance to join in their discussion—when he saw Draco’s room half-opened. He peeked in and soon saw Draco lying on the bed naked for the whole world to see. A sick twisted form of lust suddenly surfaced within him as he watched his son tracing his fingers along his bare body with his eyes close. That sight was so erotic it was almost a crime not to savour it. Though he had told himself that he wasn’t really into the thought of incest, he wasn’t beyond trying something new, and besides, his son’s situation was literally asking for it. Without bothering to knock, he pushed the door open and stepped in.

            “Is that how I raise you? To reveal yourself in public like this?” Lucius asked in a pretend stern voice.

            “Father!” Draco jumped, shocked at his sudden presence. Hoping for his father to have a prolonged field trip was wishful thinking, he supposed, although he was quite disappointed at him being back so early. Hiding his annoyed face at his father for entering unannounced, he sat up, reaching for something to cover him while he had one hand over his groin, almost stammering, “Sorry, I…I didn’t know that door was open.”

            “You should be more careful. Do you want to let the whole household know that the son of the Ministry of Magic is there parading his body for the whole world to see?”

            “Sorry, Father.”

            “I must say,” Lucius said as he leaned against the bedpost, “you have grown up considerably well, son. If you weren’t of my blood, I’d say you look pretty handsome.”

            “Th…Thank you, Father,” Draco blushed, putting his head down as he wrapped the bed sheet Remus had got him around his body, not exactly sure it was a compliment or not.

            “In fact…maybe we can pretend we’re not of the same blood and…” Lucius reached over to stroke his chin suggestively, “have a little fun for a while.”

            “Father,” Draco pulled away, feeling something very wrong was going to happen. “Please leave.”

            “Why so shy? It’s not like it’s an uncommon thing. Your mother used to fool around with her sister when they were children.”

            “That’s sick,” Draco said in disgust, moving back onto the bed but cowering away from his father, his face in shock. He knew his mother was somewhat of a slut, but to think she did unthinkable things with his aunt was something he couldn’t stomach.

            “No, it isn’t. It’s just giving in to our usual primal instincts. What we are born for. Even Adam and Eve’s children had to do each other to procreate and create human population.”

            “I don’t care. I don’t want you touching me like that.”

            “Well, you don’t really have a choice now, do you?” Lucius asked as he moved in closer to his son, reaching over to stroke his chin again.

            “Please, Father,” Draco begged, trying in vain to not let the tears fall. “Please don’t.”

            “Come on, what’s the harm of having a little taboo fun. Besides,” Lucius’ lips barely brushed the boy’s ear as he whispered, “who would believe you if you told anyone that your father, the most important member of the Ministry of Magic, made a pass at you?”

            Draco turned his head away, wishing Remus was here to save him, but it probably would not help anyway, since the werewolf was probably long gone deep into the forest, unable to hear him.

            “Come. Just let go everything you believe and enjoy,” Lucius whispered huskily in a seductive tone before kissing his earlobe.

            “Father, no…” Draco tried to push him off and keep him from leaning in to try and take possession of his lips. How could his father, his own father, do this to him? He may not really love him like a son should to a father, but he had his respects to him as a father figure. After all, he was of blood, and bloods do not turn against each other. But how could his own father ignore the fact that they shared the same blood and that whatever they were doing was against all things taboo? Wasn’t having a wife and numerous sex slaves he could get his hands on enough? Wasn’t having all those secret affairs with other mistresses and other people’s wives (he knew they existed even though Lucius put on a straight face and pretended it never happened, and he was sure his mother also had her share of secret lovers stashed behind the closet) satisfying enough for him? Why, of all people, did he choose to assault him and treat him like he treated his other sex partners: like a sex toy that can be used and discarded as he wished?

            When Lucius used a spell to close and lock the door and started fondling his boyhood, it was the last straw. He didn’t care if Remus could hear him or not; he had to try. Wriggling out of his father’s grasp in vain and trying to get him off him, he screamed for his life.

            “Get off me, you bastard! Get the fuck off me!!!”

            “Don't try to struggle. You…”

            Lucius’ words were stopped short when a huge big-ass animal on four legs barged through the room, crushing through the locked door, and pounced on him, growling murderously at him with his golden eyes. Some of the hired help, that just so happen to be there, gasped in shock at the sight and started screaming. Draco wriggled out of Lucius’ hold immediately, falling off the bed and crawling over to the wall, curling up like a ball as he watched in shock at what was going on. Apparently, Remus the werewolf wasn’t really very far off from the mansion as it still wanted to keep its beloved mate in sight. As soon as it heard Draco’s scream, it tore towards the mansion without a second thought, shocking the household and banging past everyone that was there before having Lucius at its mercy. Narcissa and her girlfriends heard the commotion and were shocked beyond words at the sight. Some of them fainted while others made a run for it, but Narcissa, who knew of Remus’ nature, quickly made her way downstairs to search for the guards or anyone strong enough to help.

            Meanwhile, the werewolf snarled and growled at Lucius, baring his fangs at him, ready to tear him into shreds. No one harms its mate and gets away with it. Draco finally awoken from his daze and immediately recognized Remus and shouted at the split second the werewolf was about to plant his canines onto Lucius’ jugular.

            “Wait, Remy, don’t! Don’t hurt him!”

            The werewolf stopped at Draco’s command, then glared at Draco, its golden eyes demanding a good reason why it shouldn’t turn this older blonde into mincemeat.

            “No! Stop! Remus Lupin, I order you not to hurt him,” Draco said in an authoritative voice, giving him a stern look. He was saying not out of concern for his father’s life, but more of not wanting to lose Remus into bloodlust and possibly being taken away or taken down.

            The werewolf wrestled with its need to chomp off Lucius’ head and Draco’s orders to obey him. It glared long and hard at Lucius before finally slowly moving away from him, trotting over to nuzzle Draco’s head and whined in its doggy way, wondering if its little blonde mate was OK. Draco gave it a reassuring smile and petted its head, confirming that he was alright.

            “You should’ve killed me when you had the chance, Cubby,” Lucius hissed. Seeing an opportunity, he removed the black covering from his cane to reveal the silver within and started hitting at the werewolf, shouting, “Take that, you beast!”

            “FATHER, STOP IT!! YOU’RE HURTING HIM!!!” Draco yelled in horror at the top of his voice, trying to bat the cane away but was immediately pushed off by Lucius.

            “Go away, boy!” Lucius exclaimed as he hit him some more. Every hit from the silver rod confirmed the werewolf’s vulnerability to silver; it actually burned through the werewolf skin, leaving it parched and covered with very painful lesions and sounds of hissing and the smell of burnt flesh was evident at every contact. “That slave’s dangerous! I never should’ve given him to you!”

            “Please, Father, stop!!” Draco grabbed onto Lucius’ sleeves, pulling him back with all his might. “Please! If you stop, I promise I will let you have me! Please!”

            The werewolf obviously did not agree with that statement. It heard what Draco said and instincts told it that it would not end well. It quickly rammed against Lucius, knocking him over, and blocked Draco from Lucius, its hackles raised as it growled threateningly at him, not letting him touch his mate despite its badly burnt body.

            “I’m not in the mood to discuss that right now! I need to contain this dangerous thing!” Lucius beat him again with the silver rod some more before pointing his wand at him and shouted, “ _Crucio_!”

            The Cruciatus curse immediately came to effect. The poor werewolf let out a canine yelp and fell onto the floor, whining and fidgeting like an epileptic getting a seizure as the curse surged through its veins, twisting and turning its insides and threatening to break its every bone on its body. Draco wanted to do something, anything, to stop this pain it was experiencing but he didn’t have his wand with him, no thanks to the school rules. He tried to hold his beloved close but even his touches hurt it, and it was in danger of biting its own tongue. He didn’t care that he was crying like a baby right now; he just wanted its pain to stop.

            “Please! He is just protecting me! Please, Father, please! Stop this!”

            Lucius waited for the werewolf to faint from the pain before removing the curse off it. By then, Narcissa had already brought in their personal bodyguards to come assist him. Lucius saw them and barked, “Guards! Take this thing and lock him up at the coal cellar!”

            The three men obeyed and did so. One carried the hind legs, the other carried the front legs and the last one carried the middle as they brought the poor werewolf out of the room and towards the coal cellar where Remus usually was locked up in during his quarterly transformation. Lucius was about to follow after them when Draco ran and held his arm desperately, tears running down his grey eyes like rain.

            “Please, Father, please,” he begged, crying. “He was just protecting me. Please don’t take him away from me, please! I beg you, Father, no, I implore you!”

            “He is too dangerous to be around you anymore! And I don’t want to have my only son turned into that…that thing. Besides,” Lucius leaned forward and whispered maliciously, “you had it coming when you refused me.”

            With that, he got up and whispered a spell to fix the broken door before slamming it behind him with pure satisfaction, leaving Draco to fall on the floor in his knees, sobbing bitterly and filling his heart with deep remorse, self-blame and self-loathing. The man of the house watched as the three men threw the werewolf unceremoniously onto the floor of the coal cellar. He ordered them to never allow anyone to come in or out of the cellar without his express permission and told them to fetch someone to guard the cellar. He then waited for the men to leave before glowering at the werewolf’s half-unconscious body.

            “I won’t let you have the satisfaction of having me selling you back to the business so easily, leaving me with my wounded pride. And death is just too kind for the likes of you. Oh no, I have much better plans for you, Cubby.”

            The last thing the werewolf heard before fully succumbing into unconsciousness was the older blonde leaving the cellar and locking it, sealing its fate that was to come.


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The information on Oden for this chapter is brought to you by Wiki. Thank you Wiki for being an abundance of knowledge. And as of the history of the Asian wizard world, I made it up, based on my common knowledge and my heritage as a Chinese and their narrow-minded views about “mortals having god-like powers that shouldn’t be”. I sometimes feel like I’m the only person living the present modern times here… -.-

            _“Don’t touch me!”_

_Severus winced, pulling his hand away at that bark. He knew that tone: he was in one of his ranting bad moods again._

_“Kaleb, please. I just want to…” he tried to explain but the slave would not hear of it._

_“You just want to fuck me blind, like you always do.”_

_“You know that is not true, Kaleb. Pet, you know I love you…”_

_“I’m not your pet, you freak! I will never love you! You and your people make me sick!” the said Kaleb spat as he shoved the Potions Master away. “If you truly love me, you wouldn’t keep calling me ‘Pet’ all the time like some sort of dog!”_

_“Kaleb, you know I would never treat you any less,” Severus said, clearly hurt at the previous statement the younger man made._

_“Oh? Is that why you always make me do all those things on bed when you know that I clearly do not like it? You know as well as I do that I never wanted to be in the business! If it weren’t for my fucking father always getting into debts and my slut of a mother so high in drugs she couldn’t even care less what happened to me, I wouldn’t be in this shithole with a bunch of freaks! Being a gigolo at my world is much better than this. And just because you and I have a bad childhood doesn’t make us even. It doesn’t even justify it, more so you lording over me. You don’t own me! You will never own me! I hate you!”_

_“Don’t try to make it like you know me, Kaleb Iason,” Severus leaned near him and spoke through gritted teeth. “You know less than you think you do about what happened to me.”_

_“I know one thing,” Kaleb gave him a challenging look. “You are not capable of love,_ ever _.”_

_Severus couldn’t control his hand as it flew against the younger man’s cheek. Time and time again, he had been behaving inappropriately towards him. Ever since he bought him, he was a bitter man. Nothing he did could satisfy or convince the Muggle slave that his feelings towards him were true. As his hand struck again and again, he couldn’t help thinking back about the times he had to resort to violence like this to get Kaleb to do whatever he wanted, only to regret it after the deed was done and apologizing profusely, promising that he would not do it ever again until their next outburst. It was an endless cycle, and even though it was painfully evident to him that Kaleb would never return his feelings, he continued to cling on that glimmer of hope that one day, he would love him just as much as he did._

_“M…Mah…?!”_

_Severus stopped hitting at that familiar small cry of pain. He looked down to see that it was no longer Kaleb Iason he was slapping, but his little beloved pet Harry James Potter. Tears of crimson red poured out of his eyes as the little boy who was held by the throat cried, holding to both his swollen red cheeks._

_“No…No…Mah…!” Harry begged, crying and pleading for Severus to stop hurting him._

_“Oh god, Harry, I…I…” Severus tried to hold the cringing little boy in his arms. “Wh…What have I done…?”_

_“Like I said, Snape,” Kaleb appeared out of nowhere behind Severus and brushed his lips against his ear as he whispered maliciously, “You are not capable of love,_ ever _.”_

* * *

 

            “S’vrus?”

            Severus awoke with tears in his eyes. The first thing he saw when he opened his teary eyes and looked up was a blurry vision of Hagrid the half-giant hovering above him. Quickly, he turned around and hastily wiped them away.

            “Bad dream, S’vrus?”

            “It’s none of your business,” Severus said grudgingly as he tried to will the rest of his tears away.

            “I hears ye whimp’rin’ ‘No’ ov’r an’ ov’r agin. I tot ye havin’ a nigh’mare or summat.”

            Severus didn’t reply, his back still facing Hagrid.

            “Ye miss ‘Arry, ain’t ye?”

            “What time is it?” Severus decided to change the subject.

            “It’s almost 12 in tha’ aftanoon. Afta we travels thru tha’ Portkey, ye straigh’way headed ‘ere an’ dropped offa bed wit’ou eatin’ dinner. Ye slept thru tha’ day as well. I couldna wake ye.”

            “It has been a long day, I suppose.”

            Severus sighed and got off bed to wash himself at the bathroom while Hagrid returned to his own room through the door that joined their room together. As he washed and brushed, he looked at himself in the mirror and his reflection made a comment on how bedraggled he looked. He felt that way too. He felt almost relieved that they were finally in Romania, and in a wizarding community, no less. After almost a few weeks of wandering around in Austria trying to locate the owner of the Portkey (who is a Muggle-born), they had discovered that he had already passed away due to a boating accident when he went on a cruise trip that he won from a Muggle lottery, and it took them almost 2 weeks to actually locate the Portkey itself, which was held by the state as he had no next-of-kin and had not written a will to leave his possessions behind. From here, Hagrid and Severus had no choice but to use their magic to break into the storage room that kept the Portkey and found it at the very far end of the room tucked away among other cardboard boxes that the Muggles couldn’t be bothered to categorize.

            The Portkey, which was an old worn silver trophy for some sort of golfing competition, took them to Hungary. Hagrid’s cursed memory was no help as he couldn’t remember where his contact here lived, just like he did with his previous contacts. The Potions Master found it odd that he remembered the people but never the place, and yet could still maintain a long distance relationship with either of them. When they have finally located the owner of the Hungary Portkey (a pure-blood), Hagrid had failed to mention that it was made a Portkey from a family heirloom in which the matriarch of the family held onto it like it was the Holy Grail and had never let anyone other than herself see or touch it. Even her own sons and daughters, whom Hagrid owled them to have a get-together tea for old time’s sake, had never set eyes on it, let alone touch it. One of her sons who still lived with her offered them a place to stay so that they could have a chance to get to the Portkey but unfortunately she guarded it like a hawk and had all forms of wards and protection spells all over her room where she kept the heirloom that if Severus were to attempt to counter each and every one of them, he would be done by the age of 80.

            Finally, it was the matriarch’s love for feathered friends that gave him the edge. He spent 5 weeks becoming an Animagus, which was a black raven, and earned the old lady’s trust before letting Hagrid and the curious son, who wanted to know how the heirloom looked like for ages, into the room after he cast a very powerful sleeping draught spell on her. The family heirloom turned out to be a bottle of crystallized pineapple that belonged to their goodness-knows-how-many-greats grandfather whose lifelong dream was to have a taste of crystallized pineapple before he died (back then, crystallized pineapples were a luxury only the rich can afford before it was finally commercialized as a common food item). The bottle of crystallized pineapple he ate from was then preserved with a spell and kept in a bell jar behind a red curtain situated in a hidden space behind the old lady’s closet.

            After bidding the satisfied son goodbye, they touched the Portkey and it sent them straight to Romania right smack in the middle of a wizarding community. Out of sheer fatigue and relief, the first thing Severus did once he got there was look for a place to rest his head. Ignoring Hagrid’s protest of having dinner first, he went into the first inn he saw and paid for two rooms before falling onto the bed and fell straightaway to sleep without even bothering to undress or change. It was very uncharacteristic of him to be so sloppy, but now that he was in the country where he was supposed to get the item he needed to pay for the price of his beloved’s freedom, he was beyond relief and joy. Smiling a little at his reflection in the mirror, he allowed himself a momentary bliss of happiness as he thought of how glad his little pet would be once he returned home with a contract in hand bearing the words of freedom for him.

            “Ye done?” Hagrid asked, popping his head through the conjoined door. “We gotta hurry if we wanna catch tha’ next train tuh tha’ dragon reserves.”

            “Understood,” Severus replied, wiping his wet face. “Give me five more minutes.”

            As he did his hair and put on a new set of clothes, he whispered a silent prayer that he would succeed in this quest.

\--:--

            Severus sat on a rock overlooking the reserve. A couple of trainers were seen wandering around the area, guarding the place from unwanted trespassers. He turned to the half-giant who was again munching a rock cake and asked, “How do you think we should ask them?”

            “Dunno. I’m still comin’ up wif a plan,” Hagrid admitted, resting his chin on his lap thinking while eating.

            Severus sighed. They had spent almost four months and another hour of train ride getting here, now he just wanted to get the task over with. He was not about to give up on this now that they’re here. But still, getting to the reserve was one thing. Trying to come up to the trainers and explain their quest was another. There was no way in hell they would allow just a man and a giant to just waltz into the place that held and protected the most endangered species in the wizarding world, let alone get an eye out of one of them. Try as he might, he couldn’t figure out or come up with a good excuse.

            Hagrid was still figuring out what to do when he saw someone familiar in the distance. He beamed and exclaimed, “Well, I’ll be darned!”

            “What?” Severus asked, looking back at the other man.

            “Looky dere! Is Arthur’s boy!” Hagrid pointed at the direction where he was looking, then stood up immediately and waved at him enthusiastically, shouting “Oy! Oy, Charlie!”

            The said Charlie Weasley looked up at upon hearing the familiar loud voices of Hagrid and beamed just as equally as he did, waving back at him as he moved towards their direction.

            “Charlie? That outdoor Weasley you loved so much?”

            Hagrid barely even heard that comment as he bounded noisily towards Charlie and gave him a bear hug, crying, “Hullo, Charlie! So good tuh see ye!”

            “Good to see you too, Hag,” Charlie replied in a wheezy voice as he felt Hagrid almost crushing his spleen. He saw Severus following after him and waved barely with whatever was left of his arm, “Hey there, Sev.”

            “Hello, Weasley,” Severus greeted. “I didn’t know we were on first name basis.”

            “Well, I can see you haven’t changed a bit with that nastiness of yours. It doesn’t hurt being friendly really, now that we’re not school children anymore. Uh…Hag,” he turned to the giant who was still squeezing the life out of him, “you can put me down now.”

            “Oh, sorry!” Hagrid apologized as he put the redhead down. “Dinna know I wuz huggin’ ye so long.”

            “You don’t know your own strength, Hagrid,” Severus sighed in defeat.

            “So what brings you to this part of Romania?” Charlie asked as he massaged his arms to get some feeling back and get the blood circulating after being crushed like a walnut. “You’re not the outdoorsy type to be wandering all the way here.”

            “I am freeing my slave,” Severus replied briefly, not wanting to get into details.

            “Oh?” Charlie was genuinely surprised. “I didn’t know you had a slave.”

            “Oh yes, he does! He’s juz tha’ cutest lil’ thin’ yer ev’r seen! His name is ‘Arry Potta an’…” Hagrid immediately chattered on and on about how cute and sweet and nice Harry is until he was cut off by a cold glare by the Potions Master.

            “Yes, thank you, Hagrid, for the wonderful update,” Severus said sarcastically, then turned to Charlie, “Yes, I have one.”

            “Ah,” Charlie grinned mischievously and folded his arms against his chest, pretty much getting the picture of what the history between Severus and this little slave called Harry was about. Judging by his tone, he was no stranger to the system of freeing a slave. “So you’re stuck with retrieving the bill you have to pay for freeing him, eh?”

            “That is correct.”

            “So what’s the payment?”

            “A Norwegian Ridgeback’s eye,” Hagrid blurted out, earning a raise of eyebrow from Charlie.

            “I know,” Severus agreed to that gesture. “The same thing I thought. But the price is no matter. If they asked me to get the molar of a Threstral, I’d get it too.”

            “They should know by now that it’s illegal to even remove a scale from a dragon, let alone have an eye,” Charlie commented. “What were they thinking?”

            “They wuz not thinkin’, tha’s wat it is,” Hagrid replied grudgingly.

            “More like they want him back in their arms to pay the food on their table,” Severus noted just as grudgingly.

            “Typical,” Charlie rolled his eyes. “People in the business are that way. They make their employees taint themselves so that they could feed their sorry ass.”

            “If I have to be put in jail for this, I will still do it,” Severus declared like it was the most normal thing to say.

            “You never fail to surprise me, Severus Snape. You used to be such an Ice Prince in school. What happened to the old one?”

            “Luv ‘appen,” Hagrid pointed, glee written all over his face.

            “Thank you for not minding your own business and keeping your mouth shut,” Severus glared at him again, fighting the urge to hex him to next week.

            Hagrid ignored that comment and patted Charlie’s shoulder, saying, “Aye, yer intuh dragons, righ’? Kin ye help us out or somethin’?”

            “Well, I dunno…” Charlie hesitated, rubbing his chin, not sure whether he should allow them to do such an illegal act.

            “Please, please, please. Pretty please…” Hagrid clasped his hands together, begging the redhead. “We reli need tuh ‘elp ou’ lil’ ‘Arry ‘ere.”

            “Anything that would help, Weasley,” Severus persuaded, which was something he rarely did.

            Charlie, feeling flattered and his ego inflated seeing Severus actually asking help from him, finally decided it was worth a shot. After all, he was always in for a great adventure. He took out a long parchment from his backpack and looked through it, saying, “Well, let see…I have here the list of dragons that exist in this reserve. One of them is about to kick the bucket. In fact, I was called here yesterday to put him down because dying dragons are the most vicious despite their failing bodies. Maybe if I told them you’re my associates…”

            “It ain’t my lil’ Norberta, innit?” Hagrid asked worriedly.

            “Norberta? Sounds familiar.”

            “His dragon pet he had from years ago,” Severus explained hastily. “Now do you think that will work?”

            “I’ve been a regular presence in this reserve,” Charlie replied. “I think I can convince them just nicely. But I’ll have to warn you, like I said, dying dragons are still vicious. Be prepared to get a faceful of flames.”

            “I have plenty of burn salve in my bag; I believe I will be fine.”

            “Good,” Charlie smiled. He stole a look at his pocket watch and said, “Let’s go have some lunch before we get on our way. I haven’t had a decent meal since I got here.”

            Hagrid clapped his hands with glee at the mention of food. Severus wanted to groan. He didn’t want to wait any longer, but he had to keep onto Charlie’s good side if he were to get what he wanted. To be honest, he didn’t exactly have a filling meal because of his eagerness to come here to the reserves and the fact that he woke up in the middle of the day with only one thought in mind. And since he came here, he had not taken a bite out of anything, not even have a light snack when he was in the train on the way here, and seeing Hagrid eating his rock cakes was not helping either.

            The trio, led by Charlie, soon went to a nearby small wizarding town which was like the Romania version of Honeydukes that has everything edible. Instead of stopping by to the usual food stalls, Charlie led them to a tiny food cart that bore Japanese words on it. There were a few customers here and there since it was already slightly past the lunch hour, so Charlie came up to the cart and sat in front of the steaming counter, parting the curtain for Severus and Hagrid to enter.

            “Konichiwa, Challee-san,” the owner of the food cart greeted Charlie with a very thick Japanese accent. “You flens?”

            “Yeah,” Charlie replied. “Got you some new customers,” he turned to the both of them and asked, “You guys do know how to use chopsticks, right?”

            Severus raised a brow before replying a sarcastic ‘No’. Hagrid shook his head so hard, his facial fur was fluttering like a woman doing a shampoo commercial.

            “Alright,” Charlie shrugged, then turned to the owner and said, “Forks for my friends please.”

            The owner nodded and prepared the utensils for them: a bowl and a pair of chopsticks for Charlie and bowls and forks for Hagrid and Severus. Hagrid took a long whiff at the compartment that boiled the soup while Severus eyed the weird-looking Asian ingredients that looked like it had been taken directly from the bowels of some unknown animal.

            “Wassat he sellin’?” Hagrid asked.

            “It’s called Oden, a Japanese winter delicacy,” Charlie replied, then pointed at the things before them and explained, “The soup over there is called dashi broth, which is light and tastes like black soy. All these stuff here are like steamboat food the Chinese love to eat. There’s boiled eggs, chikuwabu or gluten tubes, daikon, suji or beef tendons, ito konnyaku or just plain konnyaku, carrots, shiitake, kabocha or Japanese squash, potatoes, tsukune—which is fish or meat balls, by the way—and then there’s octopus and tebichi or pig trotters, and a number of tofu and surimi products. You just pick whichever you want Hiroshi-san here to boil and cook and he’ll do it for you, then you eat it with karashi—Japanese mustard—as a condiment. You gotta try them. It’s pretty nice. And it only costs a Knut a bowl. The first time I tried it when I came here to do my studies on dragons, I fell in love with it straightaway. I’ve become a regular ever since. I might just move into Japan if Japanese food tastes so nice like this.”

            “Aiya,” the owner named Hiroshi looked both awkward and flattered. “You too nice to me, Challee-san.”

            “I’m serious, Hiroshi-san! One of these days, I’m gonna bring my entire family here to taste your wonderful cooking!”

            “And why does it look…Never mind,” Severus wanted to say it, but decided against it, even though it looked mighty odd to him. The last thing he wanted was offend the enthusiastic Charlie right now.

            Letting Charlie help them pick which one they should try and gave them to Hiroshi to cook, while Hagrid watched the process in fascination, Severus eyed the owner curiously. There was something very odd about this Hiroshi who was now putting all the ingredients one by one into the pot with his chopsticks. His features looked very cunning, and the way his eyes were slanted inwards were not exactly very normal, and he noticed that for such a thin man, he was quite hairy. Light brown hair covered considerably around his arms and chest as he went about his work, and he could see a little bit of facial hair here and there on his face, and his hair alone was a natural dirty blonde despite the Asian look on his face. Normal people may just think of it as the usual mismatched pigmentation certain warlocks or half-breeds have, but for a trained eye like Severus Snape who relied on observation to govern his students, he could tell that he was more than just a half-breed.

            Charlie noticed Severus staring intently at Hiroshi and grinned, “Guess the gig’s up, eh?”

            “What gig?” Hagrid asked while Hiroshi looked at Charlie knowingly.

            “You may not notice, Hag, but our owner of the stall here is actually a kitsune, a Japanese fox demon. Isn’t that right, Hiroshi-san?”

            “Hai,” Hiroshi grinned and removed the glamour spell by tipping the headband off his head to reveal them his true form as a tall, thin and lanky walking and talking fox with dirty blond fur. Hagrid dropped his jaw in fascination while Severus did nothing but stared at the kitsune, blinking blankly as Hiroshi showed them his true form for another 5 seconds before replacing the headband on, concealing his foxy nature with its glamour spell and continued cooking. _Was everything here so weird?_ Severus thought, which was kind of ironic, since life as a witch and/or wizard was weird enough for everyone else.

            “Wow! But why all tha' way tuh Romania, an' in tha' wizardin' world no less?” Hagrid asked after getting over the initial surprise.

            “Wizard money more than Japanese yen,” Hiroshi replied in his not-so-fluent English.

            “Did you know that a Knut is equivalent to 10,000 yen in Japan?” Charlie asked. “That is about 100 American dollars. Imagine a bowl of simple Oden like this costing 100 American dollars. That alone is enough to motivate anyone, Muggle or not, so set up business in here.”

            “I can see that,” Severus replied. “But why don’t you just do it in Japan, Mr. Hiroshi? Surely there are witches and wizards in Japan alone and their academies, since we have Durmstrang in Bulgaria and Beauxbaton in France. And I’m sure their wizarding community would be happy to buy from…”

            “The wizard world in Asia alone is a very tough one,” Charlie explained as Hiroshi gave him his bowl of Oden. “Because of its priority towards the supernatural realm and them being big in superstitions and whatnot, the thought of someone who is a mere mortal having the same powers as the gods are either too dangerous, not worthy or sacrilege as they believe only the gods are allowed to have high power. That and also the fact that magic there is almost always view as a demonic trait and that Muggles there who try to dabble into magic always end up worse off than it should, giving it an even more bad name.

            “Now, in Asia, anyone who is born with magic powers is immediately branded as children of the Dark, and they usually, ironically, end up being tortured by the very local wizards and witches themselves who hide in seclusion and can only be reached through certain contacts. They were put under numerous cleansing spells until they forced the magical entities out of them, turning them into a being that was lesser than a Squib and forcing their bodies to turn Muggle. Very few actually make it out alive, and those who do end up becoming the very Muggles that dabble into Dark Arts because they all want to cling to the glimmer of hope that they could return to their true nature. It got to the point where they have no choice but to become refugees in other wizarding world in other countries in order to survive, and families who cannot afford to migrate into our side are usually forced to give their children away to be adopted by foster families here. Almost all Asian children that you see studying among us are refugees from the Asian countries.”

            “Hai, hai,” Hiroshi confirmed the history Charlie told them. “No witch, no wizard, no wizard wold. No wizard wold, no customer. No customer, no money. My people velly poor. All come here make money.”

            “I see,” Severus noted as he got his bowl of Oden, unable to contain a slight shiver down his spine. And he thought the Salem Witch Hunt back then was worse. He secretly wondered whether the Ravenclaw girl Cho Chang or the Japanese-decent girl that he had confiscated the magazine from came from the same refugee background.

            Hagrid, who finally got his bowl of Oden, blew at a steaming hot fried tofu and took a bite. His eyes immediately widen with delight and exclaimed enthusiastically at Severus, “Mmm~! Delicious! Ye shou’ try it, S’vrus!”

            “Come on. It won’t kill you anymore than a dragon would,” Charlie joked as he popped a crab stick in his mouth, earning an annoyed look and a raised brow from the Potions Master.

            “That was not funny, Weasley.”

            In the end, the trio spent an hour having their lunch, ordering bowl after bowl, Hagrid ordering the most. Severus, even though he had to admit that this new delicacy he’s eating was quite interesting to the taste despite its mediocre looks (at the same time thinking whether Harry would enjoy this or not if he were to bring home some), was not really in the mood for eating as his mind was more occupied on the task at hand. He stopped at two bowls, his nerves getting to him as he watched the gluttonous half-giant literally trying every single Oden item that there was on the counter, much to the delight of the kitsune Hiroshi. After having his fill, Charlie stole a look at the time again and paid the tab for all three of them.

            “Well, I guess it’s about time we get going. Hag, stop eating. We got work to do!”

            “But I ain’t full yet!” Hagrid protested with his mouth full of tofu and fish cakes.

            “You have had enough,” Severus stood up, returning his bowl to Hiroshi.

            “You’re never full, Hag,” Charlie laughed and tugged at his sleeve to urge him on. “C’mon! We’re gonna be late! Any longer and that old dragon will have burnt down half of the neighbourhood!”

            Reluctantly, Hagrid gulped down the last of the broth and returned the bowl to Hiroshi. The Japanese kitsune returned the change and bid them farewell and good luck by tipping his headband and showing them his true form one more time. Hagrid hastily took a picture of the food cart for remembrance while Severus followed the redhead, leaving the half-giant to lag behind them, yelling for them to wait for him. Severus couldn’t care less whether Hagrid was 10 feet far back from them or had tripped on his own shoelaces.

            He just wanted to have it over and done with and get back to his beloved Harry.

\--:--

            “Enter.”

            Hermione and Ron entered at the voice of Albus. Their faces were wearing expressions of grim and dour proportions. Albus could tell at first glance that whatever they were about to say was no trivial laughing manner.

            “Yes, children? What seems to be the problem?”

            “We believe that Harry’s safety may be at stake. We have yet to speculate the direness of the situation but…” Hermione paused for a while, then gestured Ron to pass her something. The boy took it out from inside his robes and handed it to her. She then put it onto Albus’ desk and continued, “Here, it is best if you read it yourself, sir.”

            Albus picked up the Daily Prophet that was handed to him. One glance at the headlines and immediately the message sunk in.

            “Oh dear, this does seem to be a problem.”

            “What should we do, sir?” Ron asked worriedly.

            “Watch him. I know you have your studies to attend to, but please, watch him whenever you can.”

            “We will do it right away,” Hermione said before taking Ron’s hand quickly and jogged out of the office.

            Albus stared at the headlines once more and sighed worriedly, “I guess I better get started with the paperwork before Severus comes back.”

            Discarding the newspaper, he quickly made his way to the fireplace and Floo-ed himself to the Ministry of Magic. The impact of the Floo powder blew at the desk, sending the newspaper fluttering off it and onto the solid floor, with its headlines face up, reading:

            **TOM RIDDLE ESCAPES AGAIN?!**


	34. Chapter 34

            The trio Charlie, Severus and Hagrid tried to catch their breath as they hid out of sight behind the huge mountain of rocks, praying to all gods of religion that they would not be found. Their clothes were charred here and there and covered with soot and ashes while they try to use wordless water spells onto their clothes to douse out whatever remaining fire that clung to them, eating away the fabric. On the other side, the old dying dragon, though his movements were slow and his senses and eyesight were not sharp enough to discover that they were hiding just right under his belly, was still dangerously close, his breath of fire sizzled and crackled as he looked for his tiny enemies that were here to snuff his very existence.

            It had been almost five days since they stepped into this fiery battlefield and had this showdown with the dragon. Persuading the trainers to let Severus and Hagrid enter was quite easy because Charlie had been very reputable as a Dragon Keeper within the facility and done a very good job escorting the dragons to and from the previous Triwizard Tournament unscathed. That and also the fact that Charlie spoke very fluently in their language ever since he came to Romania to work earned him their trust. Severus and Hagrid were given a sort of fire-proof pass in case they come across other trainers and Keepers so that they would know that he and the half-giant had clearance to enter the reserve.

            According to the records, the dragon they were supposed to put out of its misery just so happen to be a male Norwegian Ridgeback that had been terrorizing the reserves and its inhabitants for quite some time now. Despite being endangered, the Keepers and trainers were trained to know when a dragon has already outlived its lifespan and from there, decide whether they should prolong their years for special purposes or let them wither and die naturally. But there are certain dragons which instinctively knew their time was coming to an end but would not go down without a fight, so despite its failing body, it would go rogue and pillage, burn and destroy everything in its path to shout out the glory and magnify its existence. Once that happens, a certain Dragon Keeper would be assigned to go into the reserves and given special permission to put the rogue dragon to sleep, permanently.

            During those five days, it was no walk in the park either. The first two days were spent trying to track the dragon down by following the trail of ruins it left behind due to the fact that the reserve itself is so huge so as to accommodate the number and size of dragons within it. On the third day, they were able to find it chomping away at a younger dragon, tearing off and swallowing its limbs and flesh without chewing. Charlie then knew the extent of viciousness the dragon was and how badly it became rogue. He had to put it down fast. While Severus and Hagrid offered to distract the rogue dragon, it was Charlie’s job to take pictures and records of the young dead one’s body and send out a signal to other trainers and/or Dragon Keepers to notify them a death of a dragon and to come and handle its remains. Too bad the young dragon that died was not the species Severus was looking for, or his quest for Harry’s freedom would’ve over. Over the course of the next two days, the trio had tried different methods to try and approach the dragon so that Charlie could do his job but unfortunately, despite being old, the dragon was smart and knew the tricks of the trade, and knew instinctively that Charlie and his group were here to put him down. The Norwegian Ridgeback made it clear that he was not going down without a fight as he tried—almost succeeding—to burn the trio into a crisp, which led them to their current situation now.

            After waiting for what seemed like forever for the dragon to crawl past them, the trio quickly made their way into a nearby forest, or what’s left of it, to seek refuge and get a time-out after a tasking day out there nearly being scorched in Severus-Hagrid-Charlie ala flambé.

            “Goodness, I ne’er knew yer job wuz dis tough, Charlie. But I hafta admit, it’s quite excitin’!” Hagrid exclaimed as he took a long gulp out of his canteen he brought along from home. The poor half-giant was so dirty and so covered with the aftermath of fire that he almost resembled a huge black grizzly bear.

            “Comes with the territory, Hag. Why do you think I never married?” Charlie said as he wiped the sweat off his brow, smudging the dirt all over his face.

            “How long is this going to last, Weasley?” Severus asked as he threw away his outer robes that beyond charring. He looked at his hands and realized it had gotten so much dirtier than the day before. The last time he remembered being so dirty was when he had to clean himself after a day’s digging for roots at the school grounds for his potions, and that was about a year before he bought Harry. He’d give anything right now to have a nice, long, hot bath, even more if Harry were in it with him.

            “It depends, really. The last time I tried putting down a dragon was when I first became a Dragon Keeper and partnered with a senior before he retired,” Charlie replied. “And that was about, what, 3 years ago? It took us almost two weeks of camping out, hiding and many burnt marks and broken bones that took months to recover, even with Skele-Grow and Skin-On solutions. Usually, a Dragon Keeper assigned to put down a dragon works alone or with one partner at most. This is the first time I’ve actually brought outsiders.”

            “Well, that sounds comforting,” Severus rolled his eyes in sarcasm.

            “What did ye had tuh put down?” Hagrid asked.

            “It was a Hungarian Horntail,” Charlie replied. “Not the one that was used during the Triwizard, obviously, but another one. She was one of a kind, that dragon. Despite dying any time soon, she managed to force a final mating out of another young strong one and by the time we were done with her, we discovered that during our mission to put her down, she had finally laid her eggs and kept it in a fairly hidden spot so that we would not find it, and had been ferociously defending till her last breath. Of course, eventually we did when we went to clear out her lair after having done burying her remains.”

            “Hav’ they hatched?” Hagrid asked while he tried to untangle his long beard from the leaves and grass that stuck onto them.

            “Yes, of course. We added them along with another batch of eggs that a young mother dragon was hatching—while she was asleep, of course—and they have hatched and grown beautifully.”

            “Yes, yes, that all sounds very fascinating and touching at the same time,” Severus interrupted impatiently, “but right now, how are we going to kill off this one exactly?”

            “Well, according to the calculations made by the other Dragon Keepers and trainers, this dragon is about to kick the bucket at approximately 5 months,” Charlie looked at his barely surviving charts. “But by then, they would’ve probably burnt off the entire reserve and stomped into our territory. Back then, when we brought down the Horntail, we looked for the soft spot that separates between the neck and the chest, cut it open and cast a Killing Curse directly at the heart. Same theory goes for this one.”

            “Why not just blast the damn thing straightaway?”

            “For two reasons: first and foremost, you should know by now that we were almost killed numerous times these five days just trying to get close to that damn thing, even harder when we do not have our brooms, and two, even if we can get close to it, we can’t just simply spell them to death because their skin are spell repellant; their hide is too thick and the body size is too huge to allow the Killing Curse to travel fast enough throughout its body. There is a reason the knights back then go around wearing that stupid heavy outfit and waving their swords and shields about at them, you know.”

            Severus grumbled in reply. How could this get any worse? He cursed the man that sent him into this bloody mess.

            “I suggest we go for lower ground this time, since he found our previous camping site and almost made toasts out of us,” Charlie said as he got up, patting the dirt off him. “Judging by the way the dragon is moving right now, I’d say he’d be tired out for a while. We’ve led him far enough from harm’s way and I doubt he can do any damage around here. The sun is finally setting. We’ll retired for today,” Charlie turned sharply at Severus before the Potions Master could protest, “and I mean it, Snape. We barely rested for more than three hours before you drag us around through the nose for these five days. We are tired, and so are you. Don’t make me tell Hag to knock you out, because I can and I will.”

            Severus, seeing that he was fighting a losing verbal battle against the more expert of the situation, finally sighed and relented to Charlie’s decision. It was true that they were lacking the sleep department ever since they got into the reserves. He was so anxious to get the job over and done with that his talent in being an insomniac back when he was still a budding student in Hogwarts burning the midnight oil almost every night kicked in, and he barely allowed the redhead and the half-giant to have at least forty winks before he shook them awake, alerting them the presence of the dragon was near. Thanks to adrenaline pumping through their veins, they were able to stay awake until their next shut-eye, but after five days of lack of sleep, they were all approaching their limit, even Severus.

            Following behind Charlie’s lead with his trusty map of the reserve as a guide, they scoured through the forest to look for a suitable lower ground to hide out from the dragon’s pursuit. Once the sun was down and the moon was high above the sky, they finally found a small abandoned underground burrow that looked like it used to be occupied by dwarves before the whole place was made into the dragons’ reserve. They decided this was the best place they could hide out and entered the burrow for their long-awaited rest. Removing their gear and cleaning themselves with a spell while mending their clothes with the Reparo spell, Charlie took out a large journal and started scribbling.

            “Wassat yer writin’, Charlie?” Hagrid asked.

            “It’s like my personal work journal,” Charlie replied. “Only I update it when something exciting happens or when I learn something new about dragons. It keeps me informed and reminds me of what to do when something happens to the dragons or the people around it. I even jotted down my first mission to put down a dragon with my senior on it. Helps me remember things, since the mission alone was one of the greatest memories of my working career.”

            “Any explanation as to why you would rather stick your neck out to get barbecued instead of having a normal, less life-threatening job?” Severus asked while helping Hagrid to prepare dinner with all the pots and pans he brought along with him.

            “Same reason why you would rather stick your hand into the cauldron and risk having your face blown away everyday instead of standing in front of the classroom babbling about theories and facts,” Charlie replied. “I simply love the thrill of being in the presence of the most magnificent creature Mother Nature could ever create. There is always something new to learn everyday about them. They never cease to surprise me, just like you never cease to as well.”

            “What does that suppose to mean?” Severus raised a brow.

            “I mean, look at you. One minute I see you standing behind the bubbling cauldron with your greasy hair framing your pale-as-a-ghost face back when I was still studying in Hogwarts and attending your classes, and now you’re out here, getting yourself into dirt and grime and falling on your face running away from a fire-breathing dragon. Back then, you were never one of those who would be cut out to be in the harsh outdoors. You’re always in that dark dungeon of yours looming over your cauldron thinking up new potions to make that we went as far as thinking that you could be a vampire or something until you started occasionally being our Quidditch referee. That slave you have must’ve gotten you right in the head to be behaving out of your norm like this.”

            “There is always a first time for everything,” Severus replied quietly, not looking at the redhead and pretending to be very busy with boiling water. _Have I really changed that much?_ he thought to himself. If he weren’t among the people who had known him to be the Ice Prince of Hogwarts, he would’ve laughed at himself by now.

            “I’ll say,” Charlie said as he continued scribbling on his journal. “That slave—Harry, right?—he must be a real looker for you to go on an all-out war with a dragon like this.”

            “Ooh, ooh! I hav’ a picture of him!” Hagrid exclaimed as he brandished out a photograph from one of his inner pockets in his robes. “Ain’t he juz tha’ cutest thin’?”

            “When in the world did you take a picture of Harry?” Severus demanded, his jealousy bug kicking in.

            “Oh, dinna be such a sourpuss, S’vrus,” Hagrid waved him off as he passed the picture to Charlie for him to see. “It wuz durin’ tha’ first time I met him. Such a cute lil’ boy sittin’ dere feedin’ me Fang an’ cleanin’ up me hut. I wuz just comin’ home afta a long day’s patrollin’ an’ he wuz just sittin’ dere pettin’ me dog as he found tha’ mince beef I keeps in tha’ larder. He wuz so cute an’ timid tha’ I dinna hav’ tha’ heart to scold ‘im fer trespassin’ an’ demand wut he wuz doin’ dere in me home. He juz came up tuh me wif a letter from Dumble sayin’ tha’ he’s his new slave an’ tha’ he wou’ be runnin’ errands fer him from time tuh time, which includes cleanin’ me hut, an’ gave me such a cute, sparklin’ smile—as sparklin’ as me hut tha’ he cleaned—while callin me ‘Hagger’ tha’ I canna help myself. I picks him up happily an’ hugs him like a lil’ doll, an’ his laugh made me dinna wanna put him down! He is so…so…so _cute_!!”

            “I can see that,” Charlie grinned at the picture. “He is quite beautiful for a boy. Let him grow out his hair as long as Mione and let him wear a girl’s school uniform and you can’t even tell the difference of his gender.”

            “My Harry is not something toy doll that you can play dress-up with!” Severus grumbled as he snatched the picture to have a look as well. The picture portrayed Harry smiling happily at the camera while hugging the drooling, panting Fang by the neck close to his face before the boarhound turned to lick the boy on the face. Looking at the movement of his beloved’s mouth and the facial expression, he could tell that Harry was squealing with delight at the affection the boarhound was giving him. He wished the picture wasn’t that silent; he really missed the sound of his beloved’s voice.

            “Oh my God, Snape, is that a smile?”

            Severus’ mind shot back into reality as he looked up from the picture to see Charlie and Hagrid looking at him in disbelief. The Potions Master felt like he wanted to just crawl into the deepest, darkest hole he could find and rot to death. He had never once revealed his true emotions to anyone except Harry, not even his own hired help and not even to Albus, and yet now he was actually smiling at a picture like some young teenager who had seen the person he was going to marry. Well, that thought never escaped his mind, but to have people other than Harry seeing what he really was inside, he really felt that he had gone deep under with embarrassment. If only killing people to prevent them from spreading his secret was legal.

            “Let this get out and I assure you I will do everything within, no, beyond my power to make sure that you two will regret you ever saw that.”

            “Oh, will you relax, you old bat?” Charlie guffawed and clapped the Potions Master’s back. “I’m not going to let out your pretty little secret. It’s not like I have anyone to tell anyway. Besides, it is actually quite refreshing to see this side of you. Makes you more…human.”

            “You make me sound like I’m not,” Severus scowled.

            “Well, ev’n me thinks yer like summat undead,” Hagrid admitted. “Wat wif yer prowlin’ an’ glidin’ ‘round school like summat outta tha’ grave…”

            “I do not _prowl_ around Hogwarts,” Severus protested coldly.

            “Point is, Snape,” Charlie chided in. “You are one of the many living proofs that love can change somebody, no matter how stone cold they are, and it is by a sex slave, no doubt. I can see that you guys are going to carry on very well from here on as soon as you’ve free him from servitude.”

            “Watcha hav’ in mind afta yer free him, S’vrus?” Hagrid asked as he took out three saucer plates for them and poured in the cabbage soup they were cooking. Charlie took out a loaf of bread and a cutting knife and started cutting their share of bread to go with the cabbage soup.

            “None of your business,” Severus replied, still adamant to keep up with his stone cold reputation.

            “C’mon, yer already openin’ up tuh us nicely. We promise we won’t tell.”

            After much hesitation from Severus’ part and a long silence between three of them, Severus replied quietly, “I suppose…I will court Harry like a regular couple should.”

            “Ooh, how romantic~!” Hagrid cooed, his face practically looking like it was about to sprout roses and daisies at the thought of the Potions Master courting his little cute friend.

            “Be sure to invite me to your wedding,” Charlie teased. “It’s the least you could do to repay me for getting you here.”

            “Yes, yes, whatever,” Severus muttered, munching his bread. The trio soon ate in silence, feeling slightly relieved at the fact that they could finally eat in peace without having to worry that the smell of food or the light and smoke of their campfire may alert the dragon into hunting them down. Once they were done, they continued to do their own thing: Charlie writing in his journal, Hagrid cleaning and putting back their eating utensils before helping everyone to fix their burnt clothes and Severus reading and rereading the letters that were sent by Harry. Ever since he left to Romania, he had religiously written letters every other week to update Harry on his current situation, ending it with a ‘Love you forever, pet’ after note, and would wait in anticipation for Harry’s reply. Sometimes he got Harry’s scribbles along with doodles of stick people as Harry tried to write his reply in his limited way, with his doodles as an emphasis for words he did not know how to write; sometimes he would get full-fledged doodles with cute little speech bubbles and words pointed by arrows, almost like a little comic strip; and sometimes he would get full-fledged wordy letters, although he still had to work on his sentence structure, but he loved them all the same. Now that he was in the reserve, he could not write to him for fear of the dragon spotting his Hedwig and making barbecue chicken out of her and worse, giving away their position. He could only pray that Harry understood why he couldn’t communicate like they used to and wait patiently for his return.

            Stealing a look at Hagrid who was trying hard to mend a hole on one of their trousers, he realized that he had never really known Harry and how he was doing before they were finally reunited that fateful night. He had Harry update him about his days in Hogwarts whenever Albus allowed Harry to see him, but before that, he had no idea except to rely on the scribbles Harry drew about his days in Hogwarts (which he had it framed, by the way, except the part where Harry was beaten by the Head Cook—he tore that out with a vengeance and demanded Albus to do something about him hurting his beloved) on the night of their reunion. He wanted to ask Hagrid, who had been close to his beloved at some point, to tell him but he was afraid he would appear even more uncharacteristic than he should.

            In the end, his mouth beat him to it.

            “Hagrid?” Severus started out a little tentatively.

            “Yes?” Hagrid looked up to meet Severus’ dark orbs.

            “How was Harry…when he first came into Hogwarts?”

            “Ye dinna know?” Hagrid asked in a surprised tone.

            “Something sort of happened that cause us to be…isolated for a while,” Severus chose his words carefully. “I knew nothing of his life as a member of Hogwarts during that time period. I thought maybe since you have been with Harry for a while…”

            Hagrid beamed. The facial expression said it all: he was only too glad to divulge all the wonderful moments he had been through in his friendship with the little boy. Charlie, who was still writing on his journal, stole a look once in a while and soon listened in, his pen strokes slowing down to catch Hagrid’s tale.

            “Hav’ I a tale tuh tell ya!” Hagrid began. “Well, actually I dinna sees him too many times, but when I do, it wuz tha’ time of me life! Other than tha’, Ron and Mione usually comes ov’r tuh me hut tuh tell me ‘bout his lil’ adventures he has in tha’ school. Tha’ Old Married Couple tells me tha’ in tha’ beginnin’, he wuz a jumpy lil’ creature, always lookin’ ov’r his shoulder tuh see if nebody’s gunna hurts him or summat, an’ he wo’ nev’r lets nebody’s tuh touch him. Ron told me he bit him once when he tries tuh call him wi’out lettin’ him knows he wuz dere at first, and Mione sez he has takens a chunk outta him once tuh many times. I dinna knows if he ev’r bitt’n neone else, but Ron shows me tha’ bite marks once an’ I kin tell ye, he bites like one helluva viper.”

            “You make him sound like a snake,” Charlie chuckled, a mental image of his brother screaming bloody murder while Harry sinks his teeth onto his arms forming in his mind.

            _Looks like he took my advice a little too far,_ Severus thought, remembering that it was he who taught him how to take a chunk out of anyone who dared to touch him.

            “Mo’ or less,” Hagrid shrugged. “Neways, he eased down summat afta bein’ in school fer a while, an’ I havn’t met him until tha’ day wen I comes home tuh see him feedin’ me Fang. Sometimes Dumble asks lil’ Harry tuh accompanies me tuh do some of mah works tuh prepares me fer me classes. I swears he’s born fer all them magical creatures. He wuz tha’ only one tha’ could see ‘em Threstals wen I wuz catchin’ summat tuh teach tuh me students, an’ he wuz me seein’ eyes tuh help me git some. A handful kin sees ‘em wen I wuz teachin’ ‘em ‘bout it, but he wuz tha’ only slave I know tuh be able tuh see ‘em critters. ‘Em Threstals, along wif ‘em other magical critters, ease up so nicely wif him, like dere his ol’ friends or summat. Aragog, known tuh be tha’ most vicious insects an’ King of all ‘em spiders, stopped his clan from touchin’ him at first glance an’ made a web fer him to jump an’ play on like summat Muggle trampoline. Buckbeak dinna ev’n hafta wait fer him tuh bow tuh him; he juz came up tuh him like it wuz tha’ most normal thin’ tuh do an’ lets tha’ boy tuh git up on him. Ev’n ‘em centaurs, tha’ most unsociable creatures ev’r walked the wizardin’ world, talked tuh him like they knows him ferev’r!”

            “That sounds rather intriguing,” Charlie commented. “Do you think that he could be related to a Creature Charmer?”

            “Creature Charmer?” Severus echoed, being his first time hearing this kind of term.

            “It’s a sort of old, extinct and long forgotten group of wizards and witches who have the uncanny ability to subdue and charm magical creatures just by their presence alone,” Charlie explained. “The magical creatures only need to take one glance at them and they would immediately be charmed to do their bidding, no questions asked and no loyalties wavered, as if they were meant to do it and their whole purpose is to serve them. Some said that this clan possibly stemmed from a marriage between a wizard/witch and one of the many children of Mother Nature whenever they assume human form, other said that it’s probably a union between wizards/witches and wood elves. No one exactly knows for sure, but after many generations later, they slowly died out because of their elitism ideology and them only wanting to marry their own. Hearing you say that about this Harry, one of them must be the odd one out of the family and carried out the bloodline to the outside world.”

            “It is possible,” Severus rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Could his beloved have anymore surprises hidden under his sleeve?

            “Well, Ron and Mione bin tellin’ summat wonder tales while he wuz in tha’ school,” Hagrid continued his story. “‘Em portraits were happy tuh hav’ a friend tuh talk tuh since Harry is such a good listener. Many people can sees tha’ portraits lookin’ so much livelier wen Harry’s round cuz they git tuh tell Harry all sorts of thin’s an’ shows off dere stuff. Tha’ Fat Lady wuz extremely pleased tuh hav’ him round cuz he’s tha’ only person who would tolerates her singin’. Ev’n ‘em ghosts were happier an’ less hauntin’ round him, especially tha’ Bloody Baron. Harry seems tuh be tha’ only person who could be friends wif him. No other ghosts kin stand him, but ye shoulda seen tha’ lil boy wif tha’ Baron. If tha’ Baron were summat alive, ye woulda swear they were like ‘em grandpa an’ grandson or summat. Moanin’ Myrtle likes him tha’ most. She seems tuh hav’ a crush or summat wif tha’ lil’ kid.”

            Severus looked like he was going rush back to Hogwarts and exorcise the moaning little girl out of kingdom come.

            “An’ then dere wuz ‘em students an’ tha’ servants. He has dis uncanny ability tuh bring in tha’ most unlikely friends tuhgetha. He has helps Cedric Dig’gry tuh get back wif his girlfriend Cho wen dey hav’ ‘em lovers’ spat. He has helps Luna tuh finds her lost shoes an’ stop ev’ryone else from bullyin’ her. He has helps Oliver Wood tuh git ov’r his worries offa losin’ his Quidditch an’ he ev’n helps Seamus an’ Dean realize dere feelings fer each otha’, an’ many more otha’ thin’s, an’ all of ‘em ar’ now reli close friends wif Ron and Mione. He ev’n went all out tuh helps ‘em servants wif ‘em problems ev’n though none of ‘em reli treated him v’ry friendly. Juz the otha’ day ‘fore Dumble calls me tuh sees him an’ makes me take tha’ Unbreakable Vow tuh look out fer S’vrus, he has stops a servant who accidentally got pregnant from killin’ herself and helps her tuh confront tha’ father of tha’ child an’ persuades him tuh accept responsb’lity, an’ also helps a servant who fells intuh tha’ well wen he wuz drawin’ water gives ‘em Muggles calls CPR an’ brings her back tuh life! How wonderful izzat?”

            “Very,” Severus replied, his heart swelling with pride at how much his beloved had done for the school and changed their lives for the better. “I suppose that is his real magic at work.”

            “Possibly,” Charlie agreed, “or perhaps he truly has a heart of gold. Now I really want to meet this boy.”

            After about an hour of Hagrid jabbering about how wonderful Harry was and all sorts of escapades he had whenever Harry had to run and errand for him (including approaching a unicorn to get a little bit of its hair for wand makers, persuading a centaur to help confirm a prediction Prof. Trelawney made and helping him to locate a certain weed in the Forbidden Forest for Prof. Sprout with the help of some of Aragog’s grandchildren), the trio decided it was time to get their shut-eye. Leaving the fire to a slow burn, they looked for any rugs they could find inside the burrow and pulled them up against their chin before bidding each other good night.

            Severus, after allowing the image of his beloved Harry that he had learned so much and loved even more linger in his mind, slowly drifted to a slightly restless sleep.

\--:--

            “It is so nice to talk to you, Harry. It’s been a while since I had real human company.”

            Harry smiled as the red bushy man reached over to pat his head, with Fang panting beside him. The man, whose waist reached the boy’s head, lifted his billowing brown-going-to-red mane and looked up at the sky. Seeing the clouds slowly covering the moon, he knew he had to leave.

            “Well, I must take my leave now, child,” the man said as he patted Harry’s head again and smiled through his bushy face. “I hope to see you again next time.”

            Harry nodded and moved a step back. The man turned and walked towards the lake, magicking his clothes at will and making it disappear in thin air before slowly, but surely, morphed into the Animagus form he had always resembled. His loud and proud mane shrinking back into his skull and his whole body growing bigger and bigger with numerous tentacles appearing from every part of his body, the man turned from his noble strong self into a huge Giant Squid. Raising one of his tentacles as if waving goodbye to Harry, he submerged into the lake and disappeared out of sight as if his presence had never existed before.

            “Harry! Harry, where are you?!”

            “Uh-oh,” Harry stuck out his tongue at Fang like a child who did something wrong. He was actually only allowed a 10-minutes break from his nightly classes but he had wandered off too far to the lake and judging by the frantic voices, Ron, Hermione and Draco must’ve been looking for him. Before he left the lake to return to the trio, he gave one last wave at the lake, hoping that the Giant Squid would see him from below.

            “Bye-bye, Godric.”


	35. Chapter 35

            “Wake up! Hag, wake up!!!”

            “Juz a few mo’ minner, pa…”

            “Oh, for crying out loud, _Aguamenti_!”

            Hagrid coughed and spluttered as he felt water splashing all over his face. He immediately shot up trying to wipe the remaining water that got into his eyes.

            “Charlie! Wat’s tha’ meanin’ of dis, splashin’ water on me face!” Hagrid bellowed, clearly upset. “I coulda drowned!”

            “Well, you’re gonna be dead if you don’t get up right this minute and get going!” Charlie replied as he hurriedly packed up his gear. “Snape is gone!”

            “WHAT?!” Hagrid was fully awake now and up on his feet. “What do you mean ‘gone’?!”

            “I mean as in gone off to fight that bloody Norwegian Ridgeback alone gone!” Charlie exclaimed as he made a mad dash out of the burrow, with the half-giant following suite. “I woke up to find the spot where he slept empty and my journal opened face down on the floor. The last page he read was the part where my senior and I finally apprehended the dragon. He even took my special dagger meant for cutting the dragon’s hide. What the hell is he thinking, going out there trying to fight a dragon without even telling us, and when he is not an expert no less?!”

            “Worse, he’s gonna git me killed!” Hagrid screamed in horror. “I made tha’ Unbrk’ble Vow fer him an’ I’m too young tuh die! S’vrus, ye be’er not die on me, ye darn downrigh’ foul git!”

            While the duo tried to track down the Potions Master, the said downright foul git was skulking around near the sleeping dragon, trying to look for an opportunity to get close to him without actually alerting him. Truth be told, he had been around the area for quite some time now, wondering and pondering which best way to approach the dragon without getting himself killed was. That night, when the trio was supposed to have their hard-earned rest, Severus could not sleep. His body was as tired as a person who had just ran a marathon twice, but his mind was racing like clockwork. He tossed and turned in his sleep, barely even rested enough to enter REM state. Finally, giving up of ever trying getting into Dreamland, he sat up and stared blankly into space for 15 minutes flat. His eyes darted around and caught sight of the journal that Charlie was writing. Careful not to wake the redhead, he accio-ed the book onto his lap, quietly crawled out of the burrow and, using the Lumos spell, read the journal, specifically the part where Charlie had to put down his first dragon with his senior, over and over again until sunrise. Without wasting any time, he moved about packing his things as quietly as possible before treading out of the forest, retracing their steps until he finally found the dragon just about half a kilometer away from where he came from. He had been waiting there since then.

            Since casting spells would not do him any good and the dragon’s body size proved to be a disadvantage to him if he ever considered casting spells on him anyway, he knew he had to rely on stealth and the element of surprise to counter the fire-breathing reptile. According to what he had read from Charlie’s journal, he and his senior had brought along brooms with them bring down the Horntail so that one would distract it while the other tried to fly closer to the soft spot to cut it open and aim the Killing Curse directly into the heart. Since he was lacking in the broom department, he had to figure out some way to try and get the dragon to fall on his back so that his vulnerable lower belly would be exposed long enough to allow him to reach the soft spot and cut it. He could try waking him and diverting his attention to some position where he could slip under him and slit him, but he would be in a risk where his presence may be made known. He could try accio-ing someone’s broom over to increase his chances of getting the dragon’s soft spot but the result would’ve been the same as well: he’d still be spotted.

            “Oh, for crying out loud,” Severus finally grumbled to himself. “I am the Potions Master of Hogwarts. If I can face a whole classroom of students that could blow up their potions and possibly the entire lab at any given moment, I should be able to face this.”

            Slowly, Severus sneaked out from his hiding position and stealthily moved closer towards the reptile monster. Occasionally, the dragon would snort, blowing out a short blaze of flames and a cloud of black smoke, forcing Severus make a dive towards the grass and lie as flat as possible so he wouldn’t be seen, but he more or less went back to sleep without realizing the man coming close to him. He saw a huge boulder right near the dragon’s face and thought that if he could use the levitation spell wordlessly to levitate and throw it at a far end to divert his attention towards it, it might just give him the edge to do a little swashbuckling on the dragon. He raised his wand and was about to say the spell in his mind when…

            “Severus! Severus, you idiot, stop!!!”

            Severus spun round at the sound of Charlie’s scream and saw the duo running towards him flailing their arms wildly to stop whatever they thought he wanted to do. The dragon’s eyes immediately snapped open and the dragon himself got up, rearing his long, scaly head at the Potions Master, glaring him with murderous intent. Before Severus could get away, the dragon lunged forward to bite his arm, forcing him to let go of his wand. Luckily, the dragon only used the tip of his mouth, and only two upper teeth and two lower teeth clamped onto his arm, or he would’ve amputated Severus’ arm right off, but it still hurt like a bitch. The dragon picked the man up high into the air without effort and shook him like a rag doll, causing his bag and whatever content was in it and the special dagger he stole from Charlie that he held in his left hand to fall everywhere on the grass. Charlie and Hagrid looked in horror as the creature continued to shake Severus, his arm already dislocating and threatening to fall off, and they were rooted at the spot, not knowing what to do to help the Potions Master.

            “ _Sectumsempra_!”

            The dragon roared as he let go his bite on Severus, flinging him in the midair. Apparently, Severus had put one of his Dark Art curses into good use as the spell left numerous deep gashes onto the tender flesh of the dragon’s nose, spilling his warm blood all over the place. Charlie, who finally found his voice and motor skills, quickly whipped out a wand and pointed at Severus and shouted the levitation spell so that Severus would not fall headlong onto the ground like a torpedo. Hagrid picked up a few other huge boulders lying around and threw them at the dragon to continue keeping him distracted while Charlie continued using spells to bring Severus slowly down onto the earth.

            As soon as Severus was on the ground, Charlie quickly inspected his arm. Two huge puncture wounds were on his arm through and through, blood spilling out of it like a waterfall. The flesh and bones within were very, _very_ visible, and if they weren’t in the wizarding world, a Muggle doctor would’ve given it one glance and immediately schedule for an amputation surgery. Charlie knew that if he didn’t treat it immediately, he could die just from bleeding alone. Quickly, as Hagrid got the dragon distracted enough to drag them both of them to a secluded spot, he pulled out a huge bottle the size of a keg from his bag and emptied its entire content on his entire affected arm. Severus couldn’t help letting out a scream of pain as the solution stung him, but Charlie couldn’t care less if Severus was crying for his dead mother to come out from her grave; he had to treat it before it got worse. Almost immediately, the solution created some sort of transparent layer around the affected arm to make an emergency blood clot and stop it from bleeding any further. The redhead knew this would not last long and that he needed professional medical help, or else Severus was going to have a dead arm.

            “You alright there, Snape?” Charlie asked, while Hagrid looked at him worriedly.

            “Yes,” Severus said, the colour of his face contradicting his words. “I’m fine.”

            “We gotta git outta ‘ere! We gotta take ye tuh a medi-wizard!” Hagrid exclaimed, shielding the duo as the dragon blindly blasted his fire at every direction, trying to hit his target while nursing his bleeding nose at the same time.

            “I am not leaving without that eye!”

            “It’s not worth dying for, Snape!” Charlie scolded. “Just let me do my job and get the hell out of here! Do you want your death to cause Hagrid’s death as well? Do you have any idea what your actions may cause on poor Hag here? You do remember that Hag has taken the Unbreakable Vow for your sake now, don’t you?”

            That statement suddenly triggered an idea on Severus. It may sound crazy but it just might work for him.

            “Hagrid,” Severus turned to the half-giant. “What was the Unbreakable Vow you made to Albus?”

            “Well,” Hagrid struggled to remember through his adrenaline-pumped brain of his, “Tuh accompany you at all times no matter how you protests, tuh keeps ye from dyin’ in dis mission and tuh helps ye if ye canna do tha’ task at hand. Why?”

            “How heavy and how far can you throw something?” Severus probed again.

            “Well, juz now wuz tha’ heaviest boulders I carries tuh throw at tha’ dragon’s face, but why ye…”

            “Do you wish to fulfill your vow and never be bound by it again?”

            “Well, yes, but…”

            “Throw me up to the dragon.”

            “WHAT?!” Charlie and Hagrid exclaimed at once, their eyes as wide as the saucers they used for their cabbage soup last night and their jaws threatening to drop on the floor as they looked at the Potions Master in disbelief. The dragon heard their shout and shot a mouthful of fire at them, causing Hagrid to yell bloody murder and picked both Charlie and Severus under each arms to even lower ground.

            “Are you out of your bloody mind?!” Charlie hissed. “Has the loss of blood got into your head and made you hallucinate or something?!”

            “I am perfectly sane, Weasley,” Severus shot a dirty look at the redhead, then turned to Hagrid and said, “I cannot do this alone, that much I admit. I am going to need your help on this. You are going to have to trust me on this one.”

            “But…” Hagrid was hesitant.

            “Do you want to fulfill your vow or not? Or you just want to die with me?”

            Hagrid tried to find some sort of excuse to decline helping Severus at this outrageous task, but he knew he couldn’t persuade the old bat not to forgo his quest to provide his little cute friend his freedom and he knew there was no other way around getting the eye he needed without doing this.

            “Alrigh’, I’ll help. Juz tell me wat tuh do,” Hagrid finally sighed, relenting.

            “Are you going crazy on me too…” Charlie protested again but was stopped by a very cold determination on Severus’ dark orbs.

            “Summon my wand and your dagger, Weasley, _now_.”

            Charlie, after trying in vain to glare challengingly at the Potions Master, let out a loud groan of defeat and accio-ed both Severus’ wand and his dagger back into his hand. He passed it grudgingly at Severus, who in turn nodded at Hagrid as a cue to do what he was told to do. Taking a deep breath, Hagrid rubbed his hands together before picking Severus up by back of the collar and the bottom of his shirt with both his hands and aimed him towards the dragon. One heave, two heaves, and Hagrid threw Severus high up in the air like a Muggle would at shotput. Casting the levitation spell on himself, he landed smoothly on top of the dragon right between his eyes. The fiery reptile could feel the man on him and shook his head, trying to shake him off, but Severus, despite his aching arm, held onto one of its scaly wrinkles on the forehead tight and not letting go. A few times, the dragon had almost succeeded in getting him off his face, but Severus managed to regain composure by using the levitation on himself and grab hold of one of the wrinkles again.

            “Sorry, you big lizard, but I need you for my beloved.”

            So saying, he used his wand to cast the Lumos spell so that the light would stun it momentarily before he raised the dagger a split second later and plunged it deep into one of the dragon’s eye, slicing the eyelid off while holding desperately onto that wrinkle for dear life. The dragon roared in pain and blew out his fire everywhere to get at Severus but his flames had a limit as to how far its projectile reach could go, leaving poor Charlie and Hagrid running helter-skelter like a chicken that lost its head as they tried to escape the wild fire. Reaching under and into the underside of the eye, he jabbed the dagger deep down into the socket to look for the veins that connected the eye with it. The blood was warm to the touch when it splattered on the grass and nearby them when the dragon’s nose was bleeding all over the place, but having his whole arm into the socket where blood surged within it was like entering a hot tub. It did not burn him, but it was uncomfortable nonetheless. Seeing that his arm was not long enough to let the dagger hit the veins and slice them off, he knew he had to use the correct spell for it. Making sure that his arm was lodged deep enough into the socket so that he would not fall off, he let go of his other arm that held the wrinkle and brandished out his wand before jabbing it along with that arm entirely into the socket so that the wand touched the dagger.

            “ _Engorgio_!”

That did the trick. The dagger enlarged big enough that the blade stabbed and sliced through the veins, forcing the eye to slide out of its socket and sending long gushes of blood pouring out of it. The pain forced the dragon to roar in agony and fall back. Jumping off and grabbing the falling eye with one arm, he pulled out the dagger with the other and threw it at Hagrid, who caught it just in time.

            “Weasley!” Severus shouted as he fell, “Use the levitation spell to lift Hagrid up and the Bat-Bogey Hex to throw him at the dragon! Hagrid, slice the soft spot now!”

            Without hesitation, while Severus used spells on himself to land gently on the ground along with the eye, Charlie screamed out the levitation spell and Bat-Bogey Hex and sent the half-giant flying towards the falling dragon. Hitting right smack onto the soft spot, his impact causing the dragon to fall on his back onto the earth with a loud crash, Hagrid, using his full brute strength, drove the enlarged dagger straight through it and sliced it right down, revealing the crimson red beating heart within. Charlie quickly ran up to where Hagrid was on and aimed the wand at the heart through the opening that Hagrid made.

            “ _Avada_ _Kedavra,_ ” Charlie whispered, its long tendrils of greenish-blue spark traveling from the wand towards the beating heart, stopping it in an instant. The light that the dragon held so dearly in his eyes and the life it clung so desperately dissipated in an instant, almost like in a snap of a finger, as Charlie finally sent the fiery reptile to his Maker.

            “Phew!” Hagrid sighed in relief as he sat down abruptly, his legs feeling like jelly. “Dis is tha’ biggest adventure I hav’ ev’r had in me entire life! Boy, do I hav’ a story tuh tell Ron an’ Mione back in Hogwarts later!”

            “Speaking of Hogwarts,” Charlie quickly ran towards Severus who was now shrinking the eye to put it in a jar of preserving solution he had brought along with him for this moment and putting it into his robes. He checked the arm and could see that the blood-clotting solution was starting wear off as blood was starting to leak out from the hairline cracks. Charlie took out another bottle and emptied half of the contents onto that arm to strengthen the effects of the previous one.

            “How’s he doin’, Charlie?” Hagrid asked as soon as he could feel his feet again.

            “Not too good. C’mon,” Charlie said as he took Severus’ good arm. “Let’s get back to my place. My fireplace is built to lead straight to Rosmerta’s at Three Broomsticks. We can Floo there.”

            “Good idea, Charlie,” Hagrid agreed, “We will hav’ tuh app’rate tuh yer place tho’. I dinna think I kin walk another step nemore.”

            “Yes, I agree on that as well,” Severus replied, feeling fatigue slowly setting in as soon as the adrenaline wore off and trying not to show the pain in his arm as he magicked all the disgusting blood and fluid that got onto his body with a cleaning spell.

            After Charlie sent out a signal with his wand, he and Hagrid held onto Severus and both apparated to Charlie’s home, which was like a mini bachelor pod’s version of The Burrow. They had no time to tour the home and Charlie was not in a mood to take them around either as the trio ran straight for the fireplace. Charlie first went in, supporting Severus by the shoulder.

            “I can do it on my own,” Severus grumbled, hating the fact that he was treated like an invalid.

            “No time for pride, Snape,” Charlie said as he grabbed a handful of Floo powder and shouted, “Three Broomsticks!”

            In a split second, they disappeared in a puff, and appeared next in the fireplace inside the staff lounge of Three Broomsticks where Rosmerta worked, only that unlike all other times when Severus came out perfectly, the man fell out, his legs giving away. Luckily Charlie pulled him out of the fireplace, or he would’ve been crushed by the half-giant who followed after them at the next second. Rosmerta, who was outside at the counter cleaning glasses, heard the commotion and peeked into the lounge to see the trio coughing and patting dirt off their bodies.

            “Well, boys,” she said in a quite surprised tone. “What brings you here? I haven’t seen you in a long while, Charlie. Coming to visit your mother?”

            “No, unfortunately it’s personal business we’re doing,” Charlie replied. “C’mon, Hag, we have to go to St. Mungo’s to have Snape’s hand treated.”

            “No,” Severus said as he quickly pushed past them and stomped past Rosmerta without letting them have a chance to hold him back. “I am going to Knockturn. My arm is fine.”

            As soon as he stepped out of Three Broomstick, he immediately apparated, leaving a worried Hagrid and an exasperated Charlie, who was rolling his eyes in defeat, behind.

            “Well, Hag, at least you fulfilled your vow and sent him back here in one piece, and not dead,” Charlie shrugged. “I think it’s best you go back to Hogwarts and give the old geezer a heads-up.”

            “Sure,” Hagrid sighed, glad that it was all over. “You not comin’?”

            Charlie shook his head, “Nah, gotta report back to tell them that I’ve done my job putting down the dragon and also help out with cleaning up the body. See ya!”

            With that, Charlie returned back into the fireplace and Floo-ed back to Romania and Hagrid, hoping that Severus would not have to run into anymore trouble, trotted excitedly back to Hogwarts to relay the good news to his favourite teacher of all times.

\--:--

            “Hey, you can’t just come in here without an appointment!”

            Severus, ignoring Illust’s shout, walked past her and made his way towards the office where the man who held the deed that spelt his beloved’s freedom. The guard who patrolled the corridors tried to stop him at Illust’s command, only to be flung away with a flick of a wand. He barged into the office without knocking and sure enough, saw Jefferson Underhill sitting there smoking his Cuban cigar looking at him with a flicker of shock and surprise in his eyes before leaning back at his seat.

            “I’m sorry, sir,” Illust apologized profusely. “I tried to stop him…”

            “It’s alright, Illust. I’ll take it from here,” Jefferson said as he dismissed his bartender woman cum secretary. As soon as the female warlock closed the door behind Severus, Jefferson put on a professional smile, “Ah, Master Snape, you have returned! What a pleasant surprise! For a while, I thought you wouldn’t make it. You preceded my expectations.”

            Severus took out the eye from the preservation jar he kept in his robes, returned it back into its original size and threw it onto the desk, not caring whether he splattered the solution all over the man’s papers, stationeries and the desk itself. Jefferson jerked back in shock, looking at the bloody mess that is the eye and narrowed his eyes in contempt at Severus, all professionalism and fake sincerity gone.

            “I see you’ve succeeded. How…chivalrous and courageous of you.”

            “A deal’s a deal, Mr. Underhill,” Severus replied, breathing hard as he tried to hold the pain of his arm in. He could feel the solution failing him; he had to solve this quick.

            Jefferson hesitated for a while. He tried to find some sort of way to delay or make an excuse to dissuade Severus from taking one of his prized slaves, but he couldn’t, not with Severus actually fulfilling the deal and coming back alive with the Norwegian Ridgeback’s eye dripping on his desk. There had only been one person so far that succeeded in fulfilling deal back then that he knew of, but he was a common man who clung to the illusionary feeling called love for his slave and had no mentionable connections to back him up, so he was able to delay and trick the man into waiting for the paperwork while he went back downstairs to force the slave to hang himself using the Imperius curse and then pretended that it wasn’t his fault. The man did not know what hit him. He couldn’t prove that it was his doing and he was in critical shape after almost dying trying to get the heart of the primitive trolls in New Zealand, so Jefferson got away scott-free while the poor man lost all will to live and died of a broken heart in St. Mungo. But the person standing before him right now was Severus Snape, one of the most powerful aristocrats in the wizarding society and probably one of the most astounding practitioners of the Dark Arts (though no one could prove he did it). To fool around with him was to fool around with Death, and he was not ready to meet his Maker yet.

            Finally, after a long silence between each other (with Severus glaring at him challengingly), Jefferson sighed in reluctant defeat and materializes the contract out of thin, “Here is the deed to Harry,” he accio-ed a quill and signed his side of the agreement before passing the quill to Severus, “Here, you sign your part.”

            Seveus nodded and signed with his good arm on the dotted line. It was not a good signature, since he was a righty, but the last thing he wanted to show this cunning and artful man his vulnerability. It ached every time he moved, and he could feel the effects of the solution getting weaker and weaker, but he had to keep a straight face. His beloved’s freedom depended on his strength.

            “Now,” Jefferson used his wand to make a double copy of the contract and passed one of the copies to Severus grudgingly, “you have a free slave. Do you wish to retrieve any of his belongings that still remained here in this place?”

            “Keep it,” Severus replied, keeping the copy of the contract in his robes. “Or better yet, burn it. I don’t want to bring home anything that would remind him of this god forsaken place. Thank you and good day.”

            With that, Severus walked out of the room, leaving the very upset-looking slave manager behind with his bruised pride. Pulling out a pain-killing potion out of his pant pocket, he downed it till the last drop before using whatever strength he had left to apparate back to the castle gates, eager to see his beloved and the look on his face when he brought him the good news.

            Meanwhile, Hagrid had already returned to Hogwarts and reported in to Albus about the success of the quest. Albus reprimanded the half-giant a little for not following after the Potions Master to Knockturn Alley and accompany him while he gave the payment to the slave manager, but overall, seeing Hagrid coming back home in one piece—and alive—was relieving enough for the old man to know that his favourite member of the staff was alive as well. While Hagrid left the office to go back and fetch Severus, Ron had just came back from cleaning up Hagrid’s hut and feeding Fang along with Hermione and saw Severus appear out of thin air at the castle gates and coming in.

            “Bloody hell!” Ron gasped. “Is that who I think it is?!”

            “We better tell Har!” Hermione exclaimed excitedly and rushed off, with Ron following behind.

            _Just a bit longer…_ Severus thought to himself, struggling to search for his beloved while he held his arm, clenching his teeth together as the Apparation wiped out most of the pain-killing effects of the potion.

            Hermione, with the help of the Marauder’s Map Ron gave her as her last birthday present when Fred and George gave it to him but found not much use for it, found Harry’s name at the dungeon areas and quickly rushed towards his position. The boy was sweeping the floors of the dungeons with Draco leaning against the wall making small talk with him. Hermione and Ron made a mad dash towards the both of them.

            “Har! Malfoy!” the Old Married Couple shouted simultaneously. “Prof. Snape’s back! Hurry! Prof. Snape is back!”

            “F…For real?!” Draco shot up from his leaning spot.

            “Do we look like we’re lying?!”

            Harry, shocked and speechless, dropped whatever he was doing and ran, with the Old Married Couple and Draco running behind his wake. They swore they had never seen Harry run that fast before, not even when he was chased by Filch accusing him of shaving the butt of his Mrs. Norris the cat. Severus was on the front steps when he fell to his knees, shaking in pain as the solution finally lost effect and the pain-killing effect was no longer doing its job. Blood began to seep out of his sleeve and dripping like rain onto the stone floor, scaring some of the students who just so happen to pass by or just so happen to be at the area. Harry, seeing Severus on the floor, tripled his speed and was right by his side, kneeling and crying, not caring about discretion and the eyes that were looking at him curiously.

            “Master! Master!” Harry wrapped his arms around Severus’ neck, cradling his head and resting it on his lap. Severus opened his eyes slowly and smiled.

            “Harry…” Severu breathed. “You’re…You’re free…”

            “No, no, no! Master!! Master!!”

            Harry wailed as Severus passed out, thinking that he was dead. The trio finally caught up with him and Ron and Hermione froze at the spot in horror, seeing the pool of blood leaking out of Severus’ sleeve getting larger. Draco quickly knelt beside Severus and checked his breathing.

            “It’s OK, Har,” Draco sighed in relief. “He’s still alive. He just passed out. But he has to get to a medi-witch or medi-wizard soon. He’s bleeding really bad…”

            “Wat’s tha’ commotion ‘ere? Oh!”

            Hagrid, after leaving the office, pushed his way through the crowd when he saw them gathering around, blocking his way and preventing him from going out to fetch Severus, and soon saw the old bat unconscious in Harry’s arm as the boy sobbed and hugged Severus’ head protectively. Seeing Draco nod showing that his signs were still good, Hagrid hurriedly picked Severus up and brought him to the Hospital Wing, ignoring the rest of the surprised and horrified people that passed by. Ron, Hermione and Draco followed him at his wake, hoping that the Potions Master would be able to make it.

            Not once did Harry let go of his hand.


	36. Chapter 36

            Severus slowly woke up, his head swimming all over like a massive hangover he often experienced whenever he had one too many drinks in those adults’ party Lucius often held in his mansion. His eyes slowly adjusting to the light, he looked up and saw the ever familiar Hospital Wing that he visited more times than he should as he helped Madame Poppy Pomfrey with her supplies of medicinal potions whenever they ran out. His body slowly regained its sense of touch and he could feel the soft but firm bed of the infirmary, and then the soft feeling of a small hand clutching his tightly…

            “Master!”

            Turning around slowly, he saw that it was his long awaited Harry staring back at him with millions of feelings mixed together, all projected in those beautiful sparkling pair of jade-green eyes that first caught his heart in a time when he felt like almost yesterday. Apparently, Harry had been waiting beside him all day and all night and would not leave even though Poppy told him to and ordered him not to look when she treated his wounds. The way Harry looked worriedly at Severus and did not even hurl or look sick when she did her thing on Severus’ bloody mutilated arm made her wonder just how much horror this small child at such an age of innocence had seen.

            “Harry…” Trying to raise his right arm to touch his beloved to make sure this was not a dream, Severus realized that he couldn’t even feel it, let alone move it. Try as he might, it would not budge.

            “Don’t strain yourself, Severus.”

            Severus turned to see Poppy giving him a very medi-witch-like authoritative look. He scowled back at her, hating the way she looked at him like she had the right to lord over him or something.

            “What is wrong with my arm?”

            “Honestly, I cannot imagine why you would risk such a thing, even if it is for this child,” Poppy shook his head in disapproval. “Dragons are one of the nastiest things in the world and their bites, scratches and burns are the worst. You’ve suffered a few minor burns here and there about your body, but nothing burn salve won’t heal, but the bite the Norwegian Ridgeback gave you was the worst. Its teeth had literally shattered your bones like glass and damaged your nerves, literally tearing them to shreds. You’re lucky to be alive, what with the amount of blood you just lost. Seriously, it is so stupid of you for not going to St. Mungo first to get yourself treated. Always have to be the silent hero and gallivanting around with no regards of your own personal safety whatsoever. What if you died on your way here? What would become of this child if you were gone?”

            “I do not need you to tell me the direness of the situation,” Severus growled, trying to get up but fell back onto the bed in vain. “No use crying over spilt milk. How long before I’m healed?”

            “Well, let’s just say it’ll need time. Therapy maybe still needed in the future. I had no choice but to destroy your entire arm bone and its nerves because they were damaged beyond repair and I had to feed you Skele-Grow and some nerve-reprocessing solution every hour at the hour. It’ll heal eventually, though I can’t say how long.”

            “Does that mean I can get up?”

            “Yes, but it’s best if you just lie down and rest for the moment.”

            If it weren’t Harry giving him a “Listen to her” look, he would’ve shouted protests by now. He wasn’t the kind that stayed still, and he’d be damned if _the_ Potions Master of Hogwarts famous for being untouchable was lying there in the infirmary, confined on the bed like some sort of invalid.

            “Fine,” Severus growled. “Where is Dumbledore?”

            “He’s entertaining a firecall at the moment. He’ll be with you shortly,” Poppy replied, then patted Harry on the head, smiling, “You can stay here as long as you want, sweetheart. Keep this old bat company and knock a little sense into him, won’t you?”

            If Severus wasn’t as old as he was right now, he would’ve stuck his tongue out like a scorned little child at Poppy the moment she turned her back at them. He waited for Poppy to leave before he looked around to find his robe lay just right on the side table. He reached over to it and pulled the paper that he got from Jefferson out of his robe pocket and gave it to Harry.

            “You are free, Harry. You no longer have to do the things you do with anyone else ever again.”

            Harry was speechless at first. He took the deed with shaky hands and scanned through the words. He may not yet know how to read the complicated vocabulary, but other words that were simple and that he knew to read was enough to tell him that he no longer have to subjugate himself sexually and that he was finally his own person.

            “I’m…I’m free…?” Harry stammered, his heart still in shock and disbelief.

            “Yes. I did it, Harry,” Severus smiled, confirming his question. “You’re free.”

            Fresh tears of joy sprang out of his jade-green eyes as he hugged Severus immediately, wrapping his tiny arms around the Potions Master’s neck but careful not to hurt him.

            “I’m free…I’m free…” Harry sobbed, unable to believe his luck. After all sorts of stories he heard in the business about how his colleagues went into withdrawals and committing suicides because their kind masters were not able to succeed in their quest to free them, he was the only one to be able to pull through and triumph. The fact that Severus almost died trying to secure his happiness was more than enough to prove that his love for him was true. He couldn’t think of anyway to repay such devoted kindness and undivided love, but the only thing he could think right now—which was the least he could do—was giving all the love he could give and more to compensate Severus’ selfless sacrifice.

            “Yes, pet,” Severus patted his head with his good arm, then realizing the current status they were right now and switched his language, “I mean, Harry. I shouldn’t be calling you like I own you anymore.”

            Harry shook his head, “I like you calling me ‘Pet’. Please call me ‘Pet’…”

            “I…I would love to,” Severus replied, surprised that Harry has become much more articulate since the last time he was with him, “but only if Albus allows it…”

            “Actually, I would be delighted. It’s been a long while since I’ve seen my grandson-to-be so happy.”

            The duo turned to see Albus leaning against the door frame of the infirmary entrance, flashing that familiar grandfatherly smile at them before slowly moving towards them. Harry went pink and let go of Severus shyly, while Severus tried to sit up.

            “Albus, I thought you wouldn’t show up.”

            “Have to run some important errands as usual. It’s not easy being both a member of the Ministry and Headmaster of a school,” Albus grinned, then stopped Severus from moving, “No, no, no need to get up. I’m just here to tell you some concerning news.”

            “What is it?” Severus asked. “Is it about Harry?”

            “More or less,” Albus nodded and produced last week’s newspapers from his robes before passing it to Harry so that he could hold it up for Severus to read. “While you were away, Miss Granger showed me this article.”

            Harry tilted his head a little to read the headlines along with Severus, pronouncing the words slowly, “T…om Rid…dle es…cape…s a…a…gain…”

            Severus, shocked, snatched the papers and read the headlines again just to make sure before his face went dark, “No, this can’t be.”

            “Yes, unfortunately,” Albus replied regretfully. “The perpetrator aiding his escape turned out to Peter Pettigrew, an old, very loyal follower of Tom Riddle. We interrogated him under the influence of Veritaserum and found out that somehow he, who had been in hiding since Tom Riddle was first arrested and then arrested again for Harry’s parents’ assassination to allow arrest attempts on him die down, had let the Aurors arrest him by appearing in the most conspicuous situation ever. And from there, he managed to make one of the Dementors go rouge and help Tom Riddle free him. He has learnt to cover his tracks very well since then and is probably on the loose now, probably even going on his murder rampage again.”

            “Shit,” Severus tried to get up again but was pushed back down lightly by Harry.

            “No, no,” Harry begged, shaking his head as he used his weight to keep him on bed.

            “Harry, I need to be out there,” Severus protested, trying to push the boy off.

            “Calm down, Severus,” Albus said. “We don’t know for sure whether or not Tom knows that Harry he thought he killed is still alive. So far, I have been pulling out numerous strings and looking for a loophole in trying to get the Ministry to approve me adopting Harry. Knowing Harry’s background as a slave, even if I present them with the contract from the slave manager indicating that Harry is free, they would not budge. Having a slave to be as a legitimate citizen of the wizarding world is a far cry, an outrage even, let alone be adopted in a common wizard family. I was thinking of presenting this as an inarguable excuse to want to adopt Harry. I will need the deed of Harry’s freedom to back it up though.”

            “You’re right there, Albus,” Severus admitted grudgingly, allowing Harry to pass him the contract. “But I still want to be out there. I need to protect Harry at all cost. Let me assist…”

            “No, Severus,” Albus stopped him with a firm tone. “Your main priority right now is to rest and recover. I will pick up from here onwards. You’ve done enough.”

            “Oh alright,” Severus sighed as he sat back, his body giving out on him. “But before you go, I’d like to ask your permission to formally court Harry once you adopt him as a legitimate grandson.”

            “I wouldn’t want it any other way, Severus,” Albus grinned happily.

            Harry blushed really hard at upon hearing those words coming out of his mouth. Formally court him? As a man would to a woman in pursuit of marriage? When he was with a Muggle-born master and lived in his summer cabin in the Muggle world during the summer where he would occasionally have access to watch his TV whenever he was in a good mood, he had seen the old 60s and 70s movies and medieval movies where the boyfriend would come to the house of the girlfriend and bow at her father to ask permission to date her, and it would always lead to a couple of dramas which often led to a happy ending that involved wedding bells. Was his ex-Master actually trying to hint to him that he would officially marry him? Severus smiled humorously at Harry’s reaction and took his hand, kissing the back of the palm like a French gentleman would to a French lady, making the poor boy hide his face with the other, overwhelmed with shyness.

            “Why shy now?” He asked, grinning, then whispered for only Harry to hear. “I have seen you do other embarrassing things before.”

            Harry pouted through his red face, glaring embarrassedly at him and giving him an “It’s not funny” look, in which Severus chuckled and laid back, his energy literally drained.

            “Stay here, love,” Severus whispered before closing his eyes and immediately falling asleep.

            Harry turned to look at Albus for approval, in which the old man nodded. The boy quickly climbed up to bed and lay right beside him. Because of his body size, he could squeeze in just right and snuggled close. Albus patted the boy’s head for a moment before pocketing Harry’s deed of freedom he got from Severus and leaving the Hospital Wing.

            “Now, to settle some unfinished business.”

\--:--

            A rap on the door and a string of jangling at the doorbell broke the peaceful silence of the house of the Dursleys, one of Privet Drive’s richest residents known to everyone. The Dursleys, namely Vernon, Petunia and Dudley, who were seated merrily at the huge dining room having their supper prepared by their Philippine cook, gave a look of disdain at the unwanted visitors’ call.

            “Shall I get it, sir?” their personal butler, who was standing at the side waiting hand and foot for the Dursleys, offered.

            “Of course you should,” Vernon grumbled, obviously upset that his lovely supper of grilled turkey was disturbed. “What do you think I pay you for? If it’s some salesman or whatever, just kick him out or something.”

            “Very well, sir.”

            The butler, rolling his eyes, made his way to the front door. It has been almost a year that he had worked with the Dursleys and frankly, he felt rather annoyed at his masters and mistress’s behaviour. But since he was paid about 50,000 pounds a year, he should not complain.

            As evidently seen by the lavish way the Dursleys were living, it was clear that after selling Harry off, they wasted no time in investing the silver coins from the wizarding world in rebuilding their life, investing into the stock market (on Vernon’s part, since his previous job involved a little stock-buying), buying expensive clothing and home and furniture to accommodate the life of the rich and famous and enrolling their son Dudley into the best private school money can buy. And, of course, they did not hesitate to employ the hired help from only the finest agencies to suit their wealthy lifestyle, all thanks to 14,000 Sickles that was Harry’s worth. In short, it was Harry who had indirectly helped them to get back on their feet, but not once did they believe it to be so.

            Opening the door, the butler saw Albus Dumbledore standing in front of him, smiling good-naturedly at him in his wizard robes with designs of stars at the hem, his pointed hat and his half-moon glasses.

            “A little early for Halloween, sir?” the butler raised his brow, a little weirded out at the oddity before him.

            “I suppose,” Albus replied, playing along. “But I’m not here for trick-or-treating. I would like to see the man of the house, please.”

            “And who should I tell my master has come for him?”

            “Just say that an old friend of Harry James Potter has dropped by for a little private discussion.”

            The butler looked at him, quietly regarding him for a few moments before letting him in and led him to sit in the guest lounge before going off to fetch Vernon. Within 5 minutes, the Dursleys seemed to have abandoned their supper and came hurriedly to meet Albus. Dismissing the butler and closed the door of the guest lounge shut, Vernon shot a dirty look at the old man.

            “Who do you think you are, showing up in here in the middle of our supper?” Vernon demanded. “And in that freaky clothes no less. Do you want everyone to know that we are associated a freak like you?”

            “Depends on whether they truly view me as a freak or not,” Albus grinned, not entirely offended by that remark.

            “Well, what do you want? Did that boy sent you or something?”

            “Oh, of course not,” Albus shook his head, then produced a small stack of papers for them. “I am here to ask of your consent to allow Harry to become my legitimate grandson.”

            “Why would you need my permission for? That boy has nothing to do with us. You can keep him for all you care.”

            “Ah, well, regretfully, our Ministry is a little bureaucratic, you see. Red-tape and all, everything having to go into procedure. You know how it is, seeing that you must have occasional dealings with the government. Unless I have a written consent that you say it is alright for you let me take Harry into my family, I cannot persuade them to proceed with the paperwork.”

            “Humph!” Dudley snorted. “That boy now has a freak for a new grandpa. Figures.”

            “My, my, such hostility. I’d appreciate it if you were to refer Harry by name.”

            “That boy is nothing but trouble,” Petunia retorted. “It’s all his fault that Vernon lost his business and forced us to remain with only the clothes on our backs! He’s a freak, just like my sister and the rest of you lot! Good riddance to bad rubbish!”

            “And yet it is his ‘fault’ that you are as wealthy as you are now,” Albus pointed, gesturing at the riches about them. “If you had not heartlessly sold Harry, you would never have live in this sort of luxury by now, increasing the body mass to your already obese nature.”

            “Don’t you dare insult me and my family!” Vernon shouted. “That boy had it coming! He should’ve just stay there in that weird world of his with his freaky friends and not come here at all. He shouldn’t have bothered us and should’ve stayed in some magic orphanage or something as soon as his parents died. He shouldn’t have anything to do with us!”

            “That’s right,” Petunia agreed. “I dare say I’m ashamed to have such a nephew ruining our lives and getting us into trouble all the time. Why, when he was barely 2 years old, he caused my poor son to fall from the stairs and almost broke his neck, not to mention letting a flock of ravens fly into our house, causing them to shit everywhere and having us cleaning after him because he thought it was funny to have those trash-eating bird brains as pets. And don’t even get me started on how he made my darling Vernon fail one business dinner meeting after another in my home when he’s around.”

            “Is that why you think it is justifiable that he should be treated as a hired help in your house?” Albus’ tone was no longer friendly or outgoing, but stern and dour. “Is that why you forbid him from attending school and treat him like some sort of animal that should be seen and not heard? Is that why you caused him to be so anti-social and making him lived the worst childhood of his life? Is that why you sold him like he was some sort of merchandize and threw him into a life of sex-selling?”

            “Absolutely,” Vernon and Petunia replied without a single remorse in their tone. “Though I don’t know anything about him living a life of sex-selling. I doubt his body is even worth a second glance by anyone decent enough to know that.”

            Albus stared long and hard to each and every one of the Dursley family members with a feeling of contempt that he could not even begin to describe. He was almost glad that he did not bring Severus along with him to talk matters with this family, or else the Potions Master would’ve cast them the Cruciatus Curse by now regardless the rules stating that the magic folks have to keep their clan as secret as possible. If this was the kind of family Harry used to have, it was almost a blessing that they did what they did, selling him back to the wizarding community. He did not know what grudge Petunia had on her own sister that caused her to participate in her husband and son’s heinous acts, and it wouldn’t be worth listening to the tale anyway, but he knew that there was no way would he allow an innocent child like Harry who had seen too much in life to be returned to the likes of them.

            “Very well, I will not prolong this argument any longer,” Albus sighed and produced the letter of consent for the Dursleys. “I just need both you and your wife’s signature to allow me to release Harry into my care, and we will not bother you ever again.”

            “Why should I sign?” Vernon asked cautiously. “For all we know, you might be asking us to sign our death warrant.”

            “As tempting as it may be, that is not my current intention. Unless, of course, you prefer a joint custody in which you have to take Harry in and look after him for me during summers and certain times when I cannot watch over him…”

            “Alright, fine!” Petunia was the first to react upon this statement. “We’ll sign it! Just keep that boy away from me! The more I see him, the more he reminds me of his ruthless father and my wretched sister,” she snatched the quill off Albus’ hand and mumbled while she signed, “Always getting the attention…Always been the apple of Mom and Dad’s eye…As if being a regular know-it-all girl genius wasn’t enough, she had to be a witch know-it-all girl genius…Like I don’t exist anymore…”

            After signing it, she passed the quill to her husband and he signed without hesitation. Taking the quill and the contract and pocketing it into his robes, he got up and nodded his head, meaning that his business was done and assuring them that Harry will no longer be associated with them any further and that not to expect anymore visits from him. While the Dursleys sent him off, he decided to rub it in just for the fun of it and to satisfy his loathing for them.

            “You know, my sources indicate that your son seemed to have…contributed to Harry’s sex-selling,” Albus turned knowingly towards the fat boy, “What was that term you used on Harry? A slut?”

            “How dare you?!” Petunia exclaimed as she covered the boy’s ears. “My son would never associate himself with that boy, let alone utter such vulgarity!”

            “Maybe you just don’t know him well enough,” Albus replied, and left it at that to plant the seed of doubt among the family. Before he left, he sort of let his finger linger at the doorknob for a moment before smiling in his usual way and bowed and tipped his hat before apparating away, leaving the Dursleys curious and suspicious about what he had just did.

            That very same night, the butler and three other of the Dursleys’ hired help decided to quit and Dudley somehow blurted out his secret ‘affair’ with Harry out of the blue for no particular reason, and for the next three days, the rest of the hired help began quitting one by one and Vernon has received the dreaded call from the stock market broker regarding his stocks.


	37. Chapter 37

            “No! Absolutely not!”

            Albus had expected that reaction. He had no doubt that Lucius was probably part of the plot to deny him the right to adopt Harry, but he had to give it a try. Harry’s safety was at stake right now.

            After retrieving the freedom contract and making sure Severus was still more or less in one piece and after getting the signature of consent from the Dursleys, he apparated straightaway to the Ministry with the other proper documents in order to apply for adoption of Harry James Potter. As expected, the whole Ministry of Magic board was in a huge state of hullabaloo hearing that _the_ member of the high council of the Ministry and _the_ Headmaster of the prestigious Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was going to adopt a child from the lowest of the low society circle with a tainted mind and body to begin with.

            Needless to say as well that the news spread like wildfire as many of the news-hungry reporters from every wizarding media agencies, including the Daily Prophet as well as the infamous Quibbler, got the juiciest scoop of the century and reported for every literate citizen possible, resulting in a very exciting talk among the people, most of it not very positive. In fact, it was such a huge news that every member of the high council held an emergency meeting to discuss about Albus’ insanity.

            Lucius Malfoy was the least happy person to find out about the news of Albus planning to adopt Harry. When he received the news from one of his Ministry connections via owl, he was in such a foul mood that he literally rammed his cane against a priceless china vase, smashing it into pieces before picking one of the pieces and stabbed a poor servant, who just so happened to be at the wrong place and at the wrong time, on the shoulder. The poor servant had to be quickly escorted out to St. Mungo by the Head Housekeeper before he bleeds to death and had to be given about 25 stitches for the stab wound.

            The last thing Lucius wanted was to have Albus bar him from having kinky sex with the young jade-green eyed boy that he had worked so hard to separate from his ex-god-brother and be charged with pedophilia whenever he tries to even think of ravishing the boy as he pleased. It was already bad enough that he had to lock away the only sex slave he could have fucked since he had to let go of that crazy nymphomaniac—but not challenging—slave Sirius sold him (and also because Remus would growl at him and threaten to bite him even in his human form every time he tried to go near him); he did not want to let the chance of his only outlet for great sex go by just because the old man suddenly thought the boy was of sentimental value (and that probably he was too old to ‘get it up’ for the kid anyway) and should be monopolized by his side every waking moment of that old geezer’s hour. As he sat at the meeting table among the council members, his mind was determined to fight this if it was the last thing he did.

            “You have officially lost your mind, Albus!” Cornelius Fudge bellowed, slamming his palm angrily onto the table. “Having a slave—a _sex slave_ , as a matter of fact—to become your grandson is absolutely unheard of! What have you to say for yourself?!”

            “Nothing,” Albus replied calmly, “only that I have come to this decision only for the wellbeing and for the parental love I have developed for the child.”

            “Preposterous!” Dolores Umbridge chided. “To have a slave being adopted into a common wizard’s family is not only degrading the purity of the wizarding bloodline, but polluting the sanctity of human mankind. Slaves are no different than animals, and should be treated as such. What possessed you to even think of considering having a grandchild as filthy as him?”

            “The same thing you would feel if you see the child of your closest friend who has lost everything, even their dearest parents, and have no one else to turn to, or does love not exist in your vocabulary or your hearts?”

            “We do not deny the compassion you have for this child,” Kingsley noted before Dolores had the chance to yell something vulgar at him. “But to have a child from the lowest society circle to be a legitimate citizen of the wizarding world is not very pleasing to the public’s eye. What would the people think of the honourable and respected Headmaster of Hogwarts and the face that represents the Ministry of Magic to accept a child of such indecent background as family?”

            “We have done many things in the past that was not very pleasing to the public’s eye in order to ensure law and order in the wizarding world, and still we get by, and the world is better off with it, and the things that the public thought were not pleasing were soon forgotten, some even grudgingly accepted. Why should this be any different?”

            “That may be true, but still,” Lucius voiced out after quite a long silence, “unless you have the consent of the next of kin and also a personal deed that says that the slave is officially a free man, we cannot abide with your decision to adopt him.” _Like hell I would let you take away such a luscious boy like him!_ In truth, his heart was screaming in angry protests.

            Albus just smiled in his usual way and produced both the deed Severus had risked almost his whole life to get and the letter of consent that he got unpleasantly from the Dursleys to the council. Cornelius read it first, then passed the papers around for the rest of the council in the meeting room. Everyone had a sort of mixed feelings written on their faces, but the most obvious of feelings were contempt and anger, and even though Lucius’ face looked calm and collected, Albus could tell that his grey eyes were burning with fury.

            “How was it that you have obtained the deed of Harry’s freedom since you are not the boy’s official Master and Severus had been relieved from being the boy’s Master?” Dolores asked, her tone probing and vindictive.

            “Well, as you put it, Ms. Umbridge,” Albus shrugged, “even though the council here had ordered an isolation period, relieved Severus of his Master role over Harry and gave the ownership to me, you have failed to approach the manager of the slavery business to transfer the ownership from Severus to me, so technically Harry still owned by Severus, not me.”

            “Regardless when we decide to approach the manager, an order from the Ministry is absolute,” Lucius noted. “The Ministry runs the entire wizarding world and we do not have to make any immediate follow-ups as long as the initial order is already given and heard by every member of the Ministry in the council. Due to other underlying things we had to complete, including the usual inspections of Hogwarts, but the point is, we could’ve approached him anytime we want to do any follow-ups to make him transfer ownership to you.”

            “Yes, I understand that, but still, when I went to meet the manager and had Severus accompany me just in case, the manager immediately addressed Severus as Harry’s Master and not me, so apparently since he had no idea of our decision to have me as Harry’s new Master, it is clear that you still have not given him the green light for that transfer, so technically Severus still owns Harry, and whatever dealings that needs to be done is between the manager and Severus, not me. In order for an order from the Ministry to be absolute, regardless of the follow-up paperwork, both parties must have knowledge of the order. So isn’t it your duty to at least tell by verbal command to let the manager know that the transfer has been made, or am I mistaken of this?”

            The council was struck dumb with this one. They knew that Albus was right, and neither of them looked like they had anything to retaliate in this matter.

            No one except Lucius Malfoy.

            “Since you have stated that Severus maintains ownership of Harry, shouldn’t you receive his consent as well to allow you to adopt the boy? The Dursleys have already forgone their rights as his family once they sold the boy into the business, so why did you ask their permission instead to sign the release papers and not Severus?”

            “Well, to answer that question,” Albus replied in a clever tone, “I was simply following the rational way in doing things.”

            “Please elaborate on this so-called ‘rational way’ of yours, for clearly wanting a slave for a grandson is already irrational enough in your part.”

            Albus shrugged, “When the manager made his demands as a price to release Harry, Severus had immediately headed off to do his thing. I only started going through the procedures of adopting Harry as soon as I heard Severus had succeeded in his mission and that Harry had been officially released. I must say that it was a very brave thing Severus did, risking his life to get the price to pay for Harry’s freedom. The last thing I would do is risk my life fighting a dangerous beast to meet up the conditions for that slave manager, who, in my personal opinion, is the worst kind of person to ever walk on this earth.

            “Since Harry was free, Severus no longer holds the rights to own him or order him around, much less giving permission as to whether I can adopt Harry or not. To adopt a child, I must have the father/guardian/next of kin to permit me to do so, and since James Potter—may Merlin bless his soul—has already passed on and Severus is no longer Harry’s guardian, so to speak, the only person I can think of are the Dursleys, who, even though have forgone their rights as Harry’s family, are still of related blood, thus his next of kin. Besides, when I approached them, they didn’t seem to entirely removed Harry out of their system, and they seemed to sign the consent papers very eagerly…”

            “That doesn’t mean that you can just gallivant around like a knight in shining armour and do as you please without the Ministry’s express permission…”

            “Alright, Albus, alright, you may have the paperwork to support your reasons, but you have yet to tell us the true reason you wish to adopt this slave,” Cornelius interrupted, his face obviously showing that he wanted to try and find a way to dissuade the old man from carrying on with his plans. He could tell that if he allowed this argument go any further, it would probably cause an all-out war between his benefactor and the highly respected old man.

            “I agree. There must be some other more viable reason other than your…attachment towards the boy,” Lucius said with an incredulous gaze.

            “I was hoping you might ask this,” Albus replied as he took out the Daily Prophet that had the headlines of Tom Riddle’s escape on it and passed it to Cornelius. “I’m sure every one of you has already known about Tom Riddle’s escape from Azkaban…again?”

            “Yes, of course. And are you trying to lecture us about the incompetence of our security?”

            “No, I wouldn’t think of it. Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, and we are not in a liberty to point fingers at the moment, since the priority of ours is to apprehend the Riddle fellow with the strictest of conduct.”

            “Then what does that have to do with…”

            “I strongly believe that this Riddle fellow may target the child as soon as he gets the chance, and I wish to protect him in any way I can.”

            “Surely you do not believe that Riddle would know that the slave is still alive and would come after him now, do you?” Lucius asked skeptically.

            “Who’s to say that he doesn’t know Harry is alive?” Albus challenged. “His parents were the people who sent him into prison in the first place, and it was them and his entire family that he has a grudge with. Why, we might not know that he’d probably be off right this moment to hunt down the rest of Harry’s blood relatives, including the Dursleys whom I asked for consent of release for adoption, just to make sure that there are no other people would turn him in like his parents did and that it probably be his way of revenge.

            “And let’s not forget the fact that during both arrests of Riddle, his loyal follower Peter Pettigrew a.k.a. Wormtail was still on the loose before he got himself caught so as to free his master. We cannot ignore the possibility that this Wormtail character may have been helping his master to clean up his mess and tie up loose ends, and possibly having the knowledge of Harry’s survival and then spying on him so that he could gather enough information for his master to help him in killing the boy…”

            “Yes, yes,” Dolores interrupted in an impatient tone, “but that doesn’t explain why you are so bent on wanting to adopt this slave.”

            “Remember the will written by both Harry’s parents?” Albus asked.

            “Yes, we do,” Cornelius replied, “What about it?”

            “May I request that the will of James Potter and Lily Evans, parents of Harry James Potter be brought forward, please?”

            The people present looked at Cornelius for a reaction. Though he couldn’t figure out why he would want to bring up a will that was already discussed beforehand during the trial meeting of Severus Snape, he decided to humour him anyway and see what bright ideas he could come up. Motioning one of the secretaries present to bring in the will, everyone waited patiently and quietly for that 5 minutes before the secretary came in with the paperwork. Presenting it to Cornelius, the man turned to Albus with a questioning look.

            “If my memory serves me correctly, the main article of their last will and testimony was to have Harry be under the care of Hogwarts, and I quote ‘by any means necessary for the wellbeing of our precious son’. If you don’t believe me, read it out loud for everyone to hear.”

            Cornelius went silent for a while as his eyes scanned through the papers. He hesitated a little before reading, “‘I hereby, under the consent of my wife Lily Evans, appoint my son Harry James Potter to be put under the care of any member of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry whosoever the Ministry of Magic sees fit should the event of me and my wife’s death occur simultaneously. We strongly stress that our son must be taken into Hogwarts custody by any means necessary for the wellbeing of our precious son as we believe the danger that may befall us is imminent towards our son’.”

            “Well then, now that we’ve heard what Harry’s parents’ will speaks of, it is our honour and our duty to fulfill their last wishes. You should know by now that under the strict rule of the Legal Affairs written since the dawn of magical mankind, we must carry their wishes to the letter. Isn’t that so, Cornelius?”

            “Well, yes, but…” Cornelius wanted to worm his way out of this one but was met by a knowing look from the older man.

            “So, since the will states that he should be under our care ‘by any means necessary’, and since there could be a possibility that Riddle’s escape may cause danger to him as feared by his late parents, is it not true that I, not as his ex-Master—since he is already officially free from slavery—but as Headmaster of Hogwarts, still have the obligation to protect and look out for Harry with all my entirety, even if it means adopting a sex slave as my own grandson?”

            “But…But that is a different situation…” Lucius wanted to argue as well, only to receive a sharp question by Albus.

            “Are you trying to say that I should challenge an age-old rule that has existed since the age of Merlin?”

            Lucius hesitated, wanting to retaliate, but knew it was a vain attempt. He leaned back in his chair and replied grudgingly, “No, Albus. I’m not.”

            “I have argued every point I need to make to convince you to allow me to make Harry James Potter my legal grandson,” Albus nodded and sat back on his seat. “All I wish from you all is a favourable answer for my request.”

            A long silence ensued. Everyone looked at each other for something to say that would deter Albus’ decision, but truth be told, they couldn’t help but agree that his arguments were legitimate and that they made sense at the very least. He had the paperwork, he had followed the adoption procedures by the book, and he had ample reasons as to why they should allow him to adopt Harry. Even Lucius, while his heart was seething in anger and discontent, could tell that the council was wavering and probably wondering whether they should carry on and grant the old man’s madness, and he felt betrayed because he knew that despite him being one of the most powerful member in the Ministry besides Cornelius and Albus, he could do nothing to stop the possibility of Albus’ success from happening.

            “We will review your paperwork and your request,” Cornelius finally came to a decision after receiving a unanimous expression from everyone. “And we will also evaluate your backgrounds and your reasons for adoption. Expect our answer by the end of this week at the earliest.”

            “I’d be delighted to hear from you,” Albus smiled in his usual way as he got up, nodded his head in respect and left the council meeting room.

            Later that night at the Malfoy manor, another servant had to be sent to St. Mungo for stitches on the head.


	38. Chapter 38

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For this chapter, there will be mentions of 15 being legally sexual. I know that there isn't exactly really such thing as being legally sexual at 15, but since they come at age in 17 according to the HBP, and kids nowadays lose their virginity as early as 14, I thought it should fit.

            Harry was on his way to the lab to bring Severus his daily need of potions. Despite his condition, Severus refused to be confined in bed and insisted that he returned back to his usual daily schedule of teaching his ‘dunderheads’, as he would put it, and insisted that Horace Slughorn be returned back to his life of retirement, whatever it may be. The substitute Potions teacher was not too thrilled at first, and neither was Poppy who kept hollering behind his wake that he must go back to lying down at the infirmary and carry on with his physical therapy, but after Albus personally checked him out, the old Headmaster deemed him fit to teach as long as he went for his daily physical therapy at the end of the day, and who else but Harry was assigned to make sure that he did as he was told.

            It has been more than a week since Harry was officially named as Harry James Percival Jr. Potter-Dumbledore, in which Albus would affectionately call him either ‘Har’ or ‘Percy’. The old man had kept his fingers crossed since the day he brought his case of adopting Harry to the Ministry Council and after probably three days of discussion between the high members of council and going through the irrefutable reasons Albus had given them, they have finally gave the old man the green light and Albus wasted no time into adding the name ‘Percival’ and ‘Dumbledore’ into Harry’s name and inside the family registrar. As soon as that was done, Harry’s room that was in the office was immediately cleared and all his belongings there were moved to Albus’ home which was just a Floo powder away, and the hired help in the Dumbledore household welcomed the little boy almost immediately. It took Harry a while to adjust to the fact that he was no longer a slave and that he did not need to run errands like he used to, but still, he was always glad to offer his adopted grandfather a helping hand whenever he could, thus earned his status in school as Albus’ personal office assistant, in which he dutifully showed up every afternoon. He had a personal tutor come in to Albus’ house every morning to teach him more on reading and writing, and helped him get started on some of the things that were taught in Hogwarts so that he could catch up and probably be lucky enough to enroll into Hogwarts as a full-fledged wizard student.

            Again, it created a huge sensation among the public once the news about the Ministry giving Albus the green light to adopt Harry spread around town like wildfire. Wherever the old man took the boy whenever he needed to get something for themselves or for the school, passers-by would either throw a glance of mixed feelings or stop to admire the boy and compliment the old man for such a fine young fellow, though whether or not their compliments were genuinely sincere was unknown. There was no doubt quite a number of people who still did not like the idea of a slave being elevated amongst the legitimate society, most of them the students of Hogwarts and their parents and of course the hired help of the school, but so far, they had dared not cause any trouble because he was officially the grandson of Albus Dumbledore, _the_ Headmaster and one of _the_ highest-ranking member of the Ministry of Magic. They could only accept this reality grudgingly and preferred to have nothing to do with the boy, as if he didn’t exist, but it did not really bother Harry even a little, since he was already used to being ignored anyway. The only people who were genuinely pleased with him and his newfound freedom were Draco, the Old Married Couple, the Hogwarts staff (who has learnt to love him like their own, with the exception of Argus Filch) including Hagrid, who still couldn’t stop picking him up and hug him tight like a little girl with her life-sized doll, and those who were touched by Harry’s kindness. They were all glad that Harry was finally free and no longer have to worry about the pains of suffering unwanted sex and fear of being sold off to another master and all that whatnot, and were glad to finally treat the boy as their equal.

            Perhaps the most pleased person to see Harry free was his ex-Master Severus Snape. While he was still confined in bed under Poppy’s scrutiny, he found out about the good news through the morning Daily Prophet and was so happy that he literally got out of bed regardless of Poppy’s protests and went straight to Albus’ office to hug him and congratulate him. It wasn’t until he noticed that Albus was in the room all the time that he stopped showering his little beloved with butterfly kisses and went over to bow in gratitude towards the old man, in which Albus accepted good-naturedly. As all the men in Severus’ family did, he went down on one knee and took Harry’s hand to kiss it, reminding the boy of his intent to court him like a real couple does. That sent Harry into a fleet of crimson and Albus in all smiles. The first condition the old man humorously gave Severus for courting his grandson was that he should be going back to bed and continue his rest before Poppy went ballistic over his absence, and Harry was the first to rise to the occasion to send him off before the Potions Master could have a chance to protest.

            Now that Severus was officially courting Harry, he had to be careful not to give in to his primal urges whenever he felt like it. After all, since Harry was no longer a slave, it would consider pedophilia to try and bed the boy since he was not of legal sexual age (in the wizard world, being legally sexual is at least at the age of 15). He would occasionally give him a few affectionate touches here and there, and a kiss or two when no one was looking, but he had to settle with holding back his hormones at least until his arm was fully recovered. He had finally regained slight feeling and movement on his damaged arm—Harry, under Albus’ strict orders, made sure that he went for his therapy everyday at St. Mungo’s—and he couldn’t wait for the day he could finally hold his little beloved with both his arms again.

            “Well, well, if it isn’t Dumbledore’s little spoiled brat.”

            Harry spun round to see Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy with their arms folded against their chests staring at Harry in disgust, leaning against the wall like some sort of cheap imitation of the Lone Rangers or something. Pansy got off the wall and made her way towards Harry, with Crabbe and Goyle following suite.

            “G…Good afternoon…”

            “Don’t ‘good afternoon’ me like I’m your equal, _slave_!” Pansy spat the last word like it was a disease as she forced him against the wall at a secluded area of the dungeon corridors. “Self-righteous people like you make me sick, and having you, a slave, as a wannabe citizen of wizardry makes no difference!”

            “Please, I…I don’t want to fight…” Harry begged as he cowered against the wall he was forced onto. “I just…want to go to Prof. Severus’ office and…”

            “That’s _Prof. Snape_ to you, _slave_!” Crabbe yelled as he grabbed a handful of Harry’s hair and smacked him right across the face, making the poor boy drop everything on the dungeon floor with a loud crash. “Who gives you the right to call our Head of House in his first name?”

            “And look what you made us do?” Goyle pushed Harry’s head down to face the shattered ingredients Severus needed urgently for his next class. “Do you know how much one of those bottles cost? Obviously less than what you earn fucking other people, that’s for sure.”

            “Please…Don’t do this…”

            “Yeah?” Pansy shot the boy a malicious grin. “And what are you going to do about it? Hit us? Given your past, you cannot afford to misbehave now, can you? Not when your position as Headmaster Dumbledore’s grandson is on the line.”

            “I bet you’re very talented with that mouth of yours,” Crabbe grinned as Goyle ran a finger across Harry’s trembling lips. “What say you pleasure our Miss Parkinson a little, and maybe we won’t beat you up into a pulp for thinking that you could be an equal like us?”

            Harry’s eyes widened in shock at upon hearing the atrocious request. After finally earning his freedom and finally becoming part of a family that he had longed for his whole life and having the man that truly loved him, they were asking him to revert back to the lifestyle he had sworn to give up? No, he was not going to succumb to such degrading position, not after all he had been through and not after he had sworn to let no one have his body but his beloved Severus Snape. Squeezing his eyes tight, he shook his head and clamped his lips shut, outright refusing the trio before him.

            “Come, come now, slave. Don’t you want to hear me out at least before you make rash decisions on your own? Such manners,” Pansy took over the conversation, motioning for the boys to hold both his arms and pin him closer to the wall so he could not escape while she took his chin to make him face her, “You see, the reason why we want you to pleasure me is that I’ve pretty much let every male population in this school—well, except the professors—fuck me anyway they want to. Even these two blokes here have fucked me more than a dozen times so far. The only person so far that I haven’t fucked is you, and I definitely need a little spice in my sex life. Well, technically ever since I started dating Draco, we never even went further than kissing, and no matter what I do, I couldn’t get him to bed me. After seeing that new slave of his he got for his birthday, I can see why. I could always look for the young blood in the hired help, but then again, they all seemed too…fragile for my taste.

            “You, on the other hand, are an experienced lot. I’m sure that besides being fucked by the Masters, you have your share of Mistresses now, don’t you? I’m sure out of all the Masters, there has to be at least one of them who has a missus in the house now, hasn’t there? Since these two blokes here are not exactly interested in fucking male asses, they are only too glad to help me in my quest for incredible sex. I would’ve done you in sooner if that old geezer hadn’t have you always by his side like some lost puppy, and when the news spread about you becoming his official grandson, I thought I’d do you before I lose any more chances. Like I said, people like you make me sick, worse when you think you can be at the same social-standing level as us, and I will make you remember who you have always been and always will be.”

            “No!” Harry shook his head, trying to fight back his tears. The last thing he wanted was to cry in front of a slutty girl like her. It was true that back then when he was a slave, his 4th Master, who was a half-blood, had a wife and three teenage children (two boys and a girl). The whole family had a sick interest for incest relationship and an insatiable appetite for sex. When they were not ordering him around to do the housework, the wife would make him lick her until she comes, and sometimes when the kids were around, they would not hesitate to join in, and poor Harry had his share of being fucked by the sons and fucking the daughter. No female had ever scared him like that wife and the daughter, and he didn’t want to relive that sort of nightmare again, especially not with this ghastly woman who thought she was the next Homecoming Queen of Hogwarts.

            “Come on now!” Crabbe tugged at the boy’s hair while Pansy started removing her panties, leaving her school skirt on.

            “Do as you’re told, slave! Lick that pussy!” Goyle urged, trying to make the resisting Harry kneel.

            “I won’t let you take me!” Harry shouted, struggling his best not to yield.

            “I thought you might say that,” Pansy grinned and produced an envelope from inside her school robes, slapping it at Harry’s face as she continued, “See this thing? It contains your deepest, darkest secrets. Do you want me to circulate this to the newspapers? Do you want,” she took out the contents of the envelope for good measure, “pictures like this of you to go out into the public?”

            Harry gasped at the sight of the pictures. He had totally forgotten that there are certain times when the business would send a representative to visit the clients to see how they were enjoying the ‘merchandize’ and how the ‘merchandize’ itself was doing, and then, in hopes of promoting their business to other clients who would like to buy slaves outside of auction days and needed to see some form of samples of the slave that they want, the clients have to allow them to be photographed while having sex with the slave. With the promise of using magic to blur out the identity of the clients in the picture due to privacy concerns, they would almost always jump to the chance of having themselves being documented while they did their thing. It was almost like an additional excitement to the usual sex they have with the slaves. Harry couldn’t control his tears from flowing as he saw himself in those pictures being fucked like it only happened just yesterday. Memories of being forced to do deep-throat, being shoved with toys, enduring countless nights of gangbang and being ridiculed and humiliated in the worse way possible while the photographers from the business clicked away like it was the most natural thing to do flooded his traumatized mind as the moving pictures flickered before his eyes, reminding him of what he was.

            “No…Don’t do this…” Harry finally begged, stooping his head low so his eyes would not have to see those scenes and relive those nightmares again.

            “So, will you be a good boy and give me a good fuck?” Pansy asked.

            “I…”

            “If you don’t, this will go straight to the Ministry, and you will never return to this place ever again.”

            The boy knew that he had no choice but to comply. This was his only chance for a real family and a real life with a real lover ahead of him, and he was not willing to give that all away. If a little fuck is what all this girl wanted to stop her from throwing him back into the godforsaken world of sex and sin, he’d do it for that sake. When Pansy lifted her skirt and Crabbe and Goyle pushed him down on his knees and shoved his head towards her pussy to do his thing, he made no attempts to stop them or struggling. Slowly Harry, with trembling hands, took Pansy’s hips and started licking her clit just like he remembered doing it to the wife and daughter of his 4th Master, occasionally running his tongue along the pussy, trying to pretend that the pubes surrounding it was non-existent.

            “Mmh, yeah, he’s good,” Pansy let out a lustful breath as she felt his wet tongue lingering around professionally at her pussy, making her shiver with the tingling of ecstasy running down her back in delight.

            “Ooh, yeah, keep at it, boy,” Crabbe and Goyle egged him on. “Lick her pussy. Suck her clit. Make her all wet and juicy, boy.”

            Harry did as he was told, tickling and licking the clit and sucking at the lips which was starting to get wet with both his saliva and her juice. Every time he tried to stop to take a breath, the goons would push him back close to her, ordering him to carry on.

            “Yeah, you really are a bitch, aren’t you?” Pansy moaned, feeling herself getting close while Crabbe and Goyle continued to hold Harry down and keep his head from escaping. “You are a cunt-licking bitch, that’s what you are!”

            “What the fuck is going on here?”

            The trio spun round to see Draco standing there looking in horror at the sight. Harry tried to struggle out of Crabbe and Goyle but the two blokes held him in an iron grip.

            “Ah, good timing, Drakey,” Pansy smiled happily at the sight of the blonde. “We were just teaching this slave a lesson about his true place in the society. You wanna join us?”

            “Yeah, it’ll be so much fun” Crabbe grinned. “We bought off some pretty good pictures of this slave here from one of Pansy’s old acquaintance who works in the business and…”

            Before the goon could finish, he was suddenly flung headlong across the corridor, his face skidding against the rocky floor and scraping it badly before he banged against the wall and was knocked out unconscious. Goyle wanted to protest but suffered the same fate as his friend, only that he was almost scalped as his head was dragged across the floor and his whole body was raised until he hit the ceiling and fell into a stupor on top of Crabbe. By the time Pansy knew what was going on, she saw Draco brandishing his wand and tendrils of sparks and smoke died down from the tip of it, indicating that he was the perpetrator.

            “Come here, Harry,” Draco said, in which the boy gladly did and cowered behind the blonde’s back.

            “D…Drakey, what is the meaning of this?” Pansy asked in a quivering tone, unable to get over the shock that it was _the_ Draco Malfoy who attacked them.

            “What does it look like I’m doing?” Draco said in an as-a-matter-of-fact way. “I’m rescuing my best friend.”

            “Y…You’re joking, right? That slave is your best friend?”

            “Do I look like I’m showering you here with a sense of humour? He is no longer a slave, for your information. He is a legitimate citizen of the wizarding world and our equal, and he is the grandson of Headmaster Dumbledore, so I would appreciate it if you treat him with a little respect.”

            “You can’t be serious!” Pansy was in a rage. “You cannot possibly think that this boy could ever be our equal! Of all people, why must you, a purebred, believe that a half-blood dirty animal like him can be the likes of us?!”

            “I am sick and tired of hearing such bullshit, Parkinson!” Draco yelled back at her with the same fury. “Purebred this, elitism that! It’s all just a fucking old-school cult and an old-fashioned thinking that shouldn’t exist anymore in this timeline! I’ve heard enough from my father; I don’t want a slutty bitch like you to lecture me about purebred and whatnot. If this is what purebreds behave, going around bullying the weak and fucking everything that moves and not giving a damn about anything but themselves, then I’d rather be a blood-traitor for the rest of my life! Harry here is the only person who sees me as my true self, who I really am, who I truly should be, and no one has no right to question that, much less a true whore like you!”

            It took a whole 10 seconds to actually let Draco’s outburst sink into Pansy’s mindset and to get over the shock and the fact that she knew less about Draco that she thought she did. Back then, the Draco Malfoy she knew would be laughing maliciously and joining in every scam, mischief and dirty tricks they suggested doing, but now the Draco Malfoy standing before her behaved nothing of the sort. And worse, he addressed her by her last name and not by her first name like he used to. In fact, his fair face was showing clear signs of disgust at what they did to the boy. Her heart and mind flooding with denial, she tried to soften her facial expression and bring back the old Draco, she smiled and moved slowly towards him.

            “Come on, Drakey. You don’t mean that. That slave there must’ve bewitched you somehow. Are you under the Imperius Curse or some sort of mind-controlling drug? For all we know, his involvement in the potions lab must’ve given him the edge to bewitch people with whatever potion he might be experimenting. Here, let me help to cure you…”

            “Don’t come any closer, slut,” Draco said as he pointed the tip of his wand dangerously at the girl’s jugular before she was able to take out her wand. “For your information, he has a name, and that is Harry James Percival Jr. Potter-Dumbledore, not some nobody you call ‘that slave’ or ‘that boy’ or ‘that animal’, and you _will_ address him as such. Now be a good bitch and hand me those pictures you tried to blackmail my friend with.”

            Knowing that Draco’s tone meant business, she reluctantly went to the robe that she took off when she was trying to get down and dirty with Harry and fished out the envelope. Draco hastily accio-ed the envelope out of her hand before she could change her mind and into his before moving a step back, covering Harry behind him like a guardian angel. By then, the goons have stirred but were too busy nursing their wounds to try and help Pansy out.

            “From now on, I will no longer associate with any of you idiots. You may go around spreading whatever stories you want about me. Make me sound like a blood-traitor if you want to, I don’t give a fuck, but mark my words, if I see you lay another finger on my best friend Harry here, I swear I will issue the Three Unforgivable Curses on you even if it means getting myself arrested and sent to Azkaban for this.”

            “You…would rather have this animal as a friend than…us?” Pansy asked quietly, her eyes stung with tears of a scorned woman.

            “Harry is more human than you three can ever be.”

            “I will not stand for this!” Pansy burst into tears of fury as she brandished her wand regardless of the situation Draco put her into. “I will not allow some high and mighty guy like you whom I clawed all the way up out of the millions of wannabes who wanted to bed you and have your everything, only to get kicked back down in the mud for a slave and now befriending another, treat me this way! You’ve dumped me for the last time, Draco Malfoy! _Avada_ …”

            “ _Expelliarmus_!”

            Pansy’s Killing Curse was cut short by a Disarming Charm and was flung back again by another spell before Draco could think up of a counter spell. This time, everyone was surprised, and slightly fearful, as the Head of the Slytherin House Severus Snape walked towards them with a dangerous glint in his eyes, his wand brandished out with his good hand. The Potions Master soon stood between the two group of teenagers, his facial expression demanding an explanation.

            “What is all the commotion going on here? I have sent for Potter to bring me my much needed supply of potion ingredients for the next class and I find them scattered all over the floor as if it did not worth anything. Explain yourselves.”

            “It was his fault!” Crabbe and Goyle immediately pointed towards Harry who was still cowering behind Draco. “He was being stupid and careless and he dropped it! We didn’t do anything!”

            “That’s because you are too busy trying to help Parkinson rape Harry!” Draco shouted at them angrily, upset that they were pointing fingers at a moment’s notice.

            “Is that true, Parkinson?” Severus turned to Pansy, his dark orbs bore deep into Pansy’s baby blues. “Did you try to rape the grandson of Headmaster Dumbledore?”

            “It…It was all their idea! I just played along with it!” Pansy quickly pointed towards Crabbe and Goyle, who in turn protested in horror, with Draco at the other side shouting at them for being stubborn and cowardly.

            “SILENCE!” Severus bellowed, forcing the two groups to shut their trap. “If neither of you will give me a straight answer, then I will take measures to make you squeal, and believe me, it will not be a walk in the park. Now can someone please tell me what really happened before I decide to take those unpleasant measures?”

            Severus’ threat was enough to make the reluctant tongues wag as both groups told their side of the story, including Harry who told his side despite given deathly glares by the trio. He also took a look at the photos that were passed by Draco and stashed them into his robes without a word. Draco, as he told his side of the story and watched while Severus listened to the others, could tell from the intent way Severus looked at the person’s eye when he or she spoke that he was secretly performing Legilimens on everyone to check out their story. He knew his godfather had a talent for casting spells without saying it, and he had nothing to hide anyway, so he allowed his Uncle Sev to penetrate his mind to confirm his story. By the time everyone was done, they looked as if they had just drunk a mouthful of scotch on rocks as Severus broke his Legilimens spell on them, leaving that giddy after-effect.

            “Very well,” Severus finally spoke after listening to everyone’s stories. “It appears that you, Parkinson, Crabbe and Goyle, have no idea of the dire crime you had just committed. You disregard the fact that the person you are messing with is the grandson of Headmaster Dumbledore, sealed and approved by the Ministry of Magic itself. If you have any qualms about it, I’d suggest you keep it to yourself, lest you know what’s good for you, but it seems you even lack the knowledge to understand such logic. If I were the Headmaster, I will see to it that you will be expelled and never ever set foot in any other wizard school even if it is the last castle standing. However, since I am not, and you are students under my house, I shall deal with you accordingly.

            “Parkinson, Crabbe and Goyle, for attempted rape of the grandson of Headmaster Dumbledore, I will personally report this to the Headmaster along with these pictures you attempted to blackmail the boy with and write about this incident to your parents. You will allow me to extract your memory so that the Headmaster will see evidence of your wrongdoings and maybe suspend you at the very least. You will also clean up this mess you made without magic under my scrutiny and I will include the figures your parents have to pay for the damages of such precious potion ingredients. Draco, though admirable that you stepped forward to rescue Potter, you still broke the school rules of fighting in the school grounds. Therefore, as much as I dislike it, I have no choice but to deduct 10 points out of my own house and put you in detention tonight at my office. As for you, Potter,” he turned to look at Harry for this, “go back to Madame Pomfrey and Prof. Sprout and see if they could still spare some more of those ingredients you lost. Tell them that it is by request of Prof. Snape that he needed another double dose of everything you have just taken from them. You are to accompany Potter, Draco, and do not forget tonight’s detention.”

            Harry nodded and walked off quickly, with the blonde following behind his wake, leaving Prof. Snape to continue lecturing the trio as they cleaned up the mess on the floor. As soon as they were at a considerable distance away from them, Draco came closer and put his arm around his shoulder.

            “You alright, Harry? That was a close one now, wasn’t it?” Draco tried to laugh away the tense feeling, only to see Harry in tears and mumbling something incoherent. He leaned his ear nearer to the boy and asked, “Eh? What’s wrong, Har?”

            “T…Thank you, Draco. Thank you for saving me,” Harry whispered a little louder, finally calling him Dray-ko instead of Drah-ko like he used to.

            “Aw, c’mon, what are best friends for, anyway?”

            “Wh…What about your other friends over there…?”

            “Now, didn’t you just hear me give that long lecture to that whore over there?” Draco smirked. “I am not their friends anymore. Not now, not ever. I’ve hated them for, like, forever. It’s a wonder it took me so long till now to actually admit it. Damn, that felt good! I should’ve done this earlier! Fuck the Slytherins! Fuck all those stupid purebreds! The only friends I have are you and Granger, and probably Weasley, and that’s all I need.”

            Harry giggled at the way Draco announced that in such a carefree, happy-go-lucky way. If he had grown up seeing the other side of the blonde—the fake, high and mighty I’m-a-purebred side—he would’ve thought that those words didn’t suit him at all, but since he knew him as he truly was, it did not come out wrong at all. In fact, the blonde should behave this way more often.

            “Will you be there during my detention?” Draco asked hopefully as they made the turn towards the greenhouse where Prof. Sprout seemed to always be.

            “Maybe,” Harry shrugged knowingly.

            “Then I’ll see you tonight,” Draco declared, in which Harry nodded happily.

            Smiling and taking Harry’s hand like a big brother would to a little brother, Draco carried on helping Harry with his task given by Severus. Not once did he leave his side for anything or anyone.

\--:--

            Albus and Severus studied the photographs that the Potions Master got from Draco very gravely. It was an hour before detention and Albus had asked Harry, who is given the task to prepare the items Draco needed to complete during the detention period, to fetch the blonde and take him to Severus’ office and wait for Severus’ instructions before Severus dared to take the envelope that contained Harry’s dark past out of his robes for the old man to see.

            “This is a very serious matter,” Albus commented. “If the media gets a hold of it, there is no telling what the Ministry will do.”

            “This must be the work of that manager!” Severus accused angrily. “He was very unwilling to give me the deed judging by the look on his face that day, and I bet he gave this to Parkinson’s cousin to pass it to her just to get back at me and make me return Harry to that wretched place! Well, I’m not falling for it! I will not allow my pet to go back to that place again! He is mine! Mine alone!”

            “He’s my grandson too, you know,” Albus raised an eyebrow at Severus’ possessive tone.

            “O-Of course. Forgive me, Albus.”

            “Apology accepted. Anyway, this situation is just as detrimental to me as well. My integrity may be questioned because of my choice of taking Harry, a sex slave, as my grandson and a legitimate citizen of the wizarding world. The Ministry would have a field day with these. We must destroy this while it’s still in our hands.”

            “Before that, is it possible to remove the blurring enchantment on Harry’s past Masters’ faces on the photos?”

            “I don’t see why not,” Albus said as he whispered a counter enchantment on all the pictures, revealing the Masters’ faces one by one. “But why would you need to see their faces for?”

            “Oh, just something that I have in mind,” Severus said as he put the photos back into the envelope and pocketed it back into his robes. “Don’t worry, I will destroy these photos once I’m done with it. I better be going to supervise Draco’s detention now.”

            “Very well. Good night, Severus,” Albus replied with a knowing twinkle in his eyes.

            Whatever Severus had in mind with those past Masters of Harry, for once he would not interfere.


	39. Chapter 39

            Remus sneezed and shivered a little as he tried to keep his naked body warm between the two barrels of coal. Outside, he could feel the wind blowing in through the gaps between the railings of the window and he could see small flakes of snow slowly fluttering into the cellar, landing lightly and quietly onto the other barrels of coal before melting into nothingness. Apparently, the guards didn’t bother to remember that once he was in his human form, he would need some form of fabric on his skin, and too bad there was nothing to put those coals into good use, or he wouldn’t have been in this freezing situation.

            It had been almost more than a week since that fateful day when he tried to make dog food out of his ex-Master with his lupine powers and truth to be told, it had been a long while since he was here. The last time he was put in here was 3 months ago during his last transformation, as where he always ended up in whenever he was feeling ‘not so himself’. He could understand why some of the hired help he saw who were being punished by being sent to the coal cellar would rather bite off their tongues than get dragged kicking and screaming into the coal cellar where the ‘monster’ lived. They were afraid that their Master would be secretly keeping Remus in werewolf form in the coal cellar waiting to eat their heads off, which was almost true because sometimes Lucius would bring his victims who had the unfortunate luck of crossing him to the manor and lock them in the cellar and beat them into a pulp until it was time for Remus to do his duty as a meat-shredder, so to speak.

            While Remus remained in his coal cellar, locked in to wait for his ever mysterious fate, Draco had just came home from school for his usual weekend home visits, only this time, he had an agenda in hand. Usually, his parents would be home most of the time during weekends because of their own personal ‘club meetings’ with their friends, but thanks to Harry, he had discovered, while he was serving detention time cleaning cauldrons without magic in the potions lab, that this particular weekend was the annual Hogwarts’ PTA meet where all parents of the students of Hogwarts’ attendances were compulsory. Also thanks to Severus, he also discovered that Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle were officially suspended for the rest of the semester and they had to repeat their schooling the following year as punishment for attempted rape on Harry. They would’ve been charged with attempted murder since Pansy tried to cast the Killing Curse at Draco, but since Severus stopped it and Draco was willing to let that charge pass by since it never really happened, Albus allowed it to slide.

            Double-checking to make sure that his parents were no longer at home, Draco snuck into his parents’ room and crawled under the bed, fumbling around a secret compartment which was situated where the pillows were and fishing out the skeleton key to the whole house. Lucius showed him where it was and taught him how to open the secret compartment when he was 5, thinking that by just showing him once, he might probably forget it as soon as he gotten older, but he didn’t count on his son being just as smart as he was and had a memory of an elephant.

            Before taking it down to the cellar, he first looked for the sleeping draught that his mother kept in the bathroom cabinet whenever she had a hard time sleeping and grabbed the first thing he saw in the kitchen larder when no one was looking, which was a pot roast that probably was yesterday’s leftover and emptied half its content into it. He first offered the guards who were standing watch outside the cellar the pot roast and waited for about 15 minutes before the sleeping draught took effect. Making sure that both the guards were sleeping, he quietly unlocked the door and opened it, closing it behind him.

            Remus sat up quickly, looking up nervously and expecting to see Lucius finally with a decision on what to do with him, only to see his blonde beloved smiling at him mischievously while hushing him.

            “Drake!” Remus breathed, wanting to get up but his body was too cold and rigid to move. “Wh…What are you doing here?”

            “Seeing you, of course,” Draco smiled as he came over. He only had his robe on, and when he took it off, he was completely naked inside.

            “Drake…” Remus was totally taken by surprise, his primal instincts starting to kick in without him having the chance to subdue it. It had been a long, _long_ while since he had seen that beautiful sight, but his rationale still held strong in his conscious mind. “We…We really shouldn’t.”

            “I don’t care,” Draco pouted like he used to whenever he was around the half-werewolf and straddled his hips without warning. “I have missed you. Have you missed me?”

            “Of course I missed you, love. How could I not?” Remus replied, trying hard to refrain from literally eating Draco’s face just to taste those sweet lips he had been dying to have. “How did you get past the guards? What if someone hears us and comes in?”

            “They are sleeping, thanks to my brilliant intellect and Mother’s sleeping draught. About the latter, we will just have to be quiet,” Draco grinned and leaned in, kissing his forehead, “Has Father been mean to you?”

            “So far, none of the sort. He’s been keeping me here on my toes all week without showing up at all. Well, technically, he did show once or twice and had tried to get down with me, but I showed him a thing or two. I made sure he didn’t dare even lay a finger on me, and he hadn’t showed up ever since. Frankly, I was wondering when he was going to suddenly pop out of nowhere and hack me with an axe or something. I don’t know what he has planned for me technically, but I definitely heard him saying he had plans alright.”

            “I’m glad to at least know you’re in one piece,” Draco smiled and leaned in again, this time kissing him on the lips. Remus reciprocated, kissing him back hungrily.

            “Oh, I miss you so much, Drake.”

            “I know, Remy. So do I. Did you know that Harry is now a free bird? Uncle Sev did it. He managed to get the price to pay for Harry’s freedom,” Draco exclaimed as he told Remus everything that had happened during the time Remus was kept locked up in the coal cellar, including the news of how Albus Dumbledore officially adopted Harry as his own grandson and Uncle Sev courting him like the old-school way all Severus’ men in the family did. Remus was in all smiles when Draco was done.

            “That’s wonderful,” Remus said happily. “Give my regards and congratulations to him.”

            “And you know what the best part is? There has been news all over the Daily Prophet that there have been some people being stripped down naked in their own homes, which was totally trashed by the way, tied up in a bondage manner and hung on the ceiling, their bodies covered with huge slash marks and there were signs of them being cast the Cruciatus curse. When they were questioned to find out who did this to them, apparently their memories were obliviated and they could not remember a single thing about the perpetrator, and no matter what sort of enchantment they tried to use to uplift the memory obliviation curse, they could not undo it and they were left with naught as to who they could blame for these crimes.”

            Remus could tell in the twinkle of Draco’s eye that the perpetrator was closer to home than he thought as he said with a grin, “I assume the perpetrator is someone we know very well?”

            “Enough talk, wolf, more touching.”

            So saying, Draco ran his hands all over Remus’ body until he found the other man’s groin. Remus’ naked condition suited their situation well as Draco was dying to feel the nice, wonderful and soft skin. Half of his mind was hoping that he could feel the velvet soft carpet-like fur that he had felt last time when Remus was in his werewolf form, but this was just as good. Slowly but surely, he found the head of the cock, circled around it with the tip of his finger until it leaked of pre-cum before pumping it gently. Remus hissed as he felt Draco’s hands around his cock. He missed the feeling of Draco’s touch so much that he could barge into the Gringotts Bank and robbed it of its gold to buy just one strand of Draco’s smooth blonde hair. As Draco kissed down his neck, nibbling it slightly, Remus had his hands roaming around the blonde’s body as well, savouring the feel of it.

            “I hate to have to rush this,” Draco whispered in his ear huskily with a sad tone. “But we need to hurry. I don’t want to risk the guards waking up once the effects are gone.”

            “Alright. You got lube?” Remus asked as he took off Draco’s robes. “It’ll make it easier.”

            “Right here,” Draco replied as he pulled it out of his inner pockets of his robes. He had stolen away into the potions cabinet after his detention to get himself some lube since his exams devoid him of going to Hogsmeade and to some of his favourite haunts to get what he needed, and he assumed that being a Potions Master required Severus to try creating all forms of potions, even of the sexual kind, thus possibly some form of lubrication ointment of some sort. He found a bluish-grey bottle that had its label torn off due to neglect and he wasn’t sure whether it was the right one or not, but he did try touching the content and smelling it, and since it did not have any odor and it felt slick to the touch, he thought it should be lube enough for him to use. Even Remus took a whiff of it before coating his fingers and preparing him while rubbing more generously onto his own cock and he didn’t seem to have any objections about its content. Draco didn’t let him take much time to prepare him though. He was desperate to have the older man’s delectable man meat in him quickly. He batted the fingers away hastily, sinking down on Remus, throwing his head back and biting his lip as he felt himself being filled up.

            “Easy, easy, don’t want you to hurt yourself,” Remus coaxed his blonde lover to slow down as he felt his cock being engulfed all the way to the hilt, “Oh, that feels good…”

            “I love you,” Draco whispered as he started moving up and down.

            “I love you too,” Remus winced and moaned softly in ecstasy as he felt Draco moving. Quickly, he gripped onto Draco's shoulders lightly as he tried to search for that spot that sent Draco to heaven and back again every time. After a few maneuvering here and there, Draco’s facial expression of biting his lips tightly to force himself not to cry out and his slightly glazed eyes told him that he had found the spot. Holding onto Draco’s hips and moving his, the half-werewolf tried to move aligning with Draco’s bobbing and soon both of them were panting erratically as they gave in to their primal urges and let go of all things rationale, ravishing each other like it was the only thing they should be doing for the rest of their lives.

            Tears starting coming out of the blonde’s silver orbs and down his fair cheeks as he succumbed into the love-making as much as he could. He was in no pain, but crying from the fact that his love was no longer in his bed doing this. It felt wrong. It felt unnatural. It felt cold and hard and it wasn’t his knees alone that were chafing on the rough cellar floor, but his heart as well at the bittersweet situation they were in. Seeing the boy’s tears, Remus slowly lowered him into missionary position and continued thrusting into him, finding the sweet spot rather quickly this time and licking the tears away directly from Draco’s eyes with the tip of his warm tongue.

            “Hush, Drake, don’t cry. Did I hurt you in any way?”

            “No…But… I don’t want to do it like this,” Draco replied in a choked voice, him meaning in the cellar. He pulled him close to him to feel him even more as he sobbed harder, saying, “I want to be in our bed, not in this cold, dirty floor.”

            “I’m sorry, love. But it’s something I can’t grant you,” Remus replied sadly, feeling just as remorseful about this. “Please try and bear with it, OK?”

            So saying, the older man leaned down to French-kiss him just the way Draco liked it. Draco kissed him back, the tears still coming down. He knew it couldn’t be helped, that it was no thanks to his father that they had to resort to this form of sneaking around to profess their love to each other, but he couldn’t help feeling that it shouldn’t be this way and that if he hadn’t screamed out loud that night Lucius tried to do him in (as disgusting as it may be), it wouldn’t have come to this. Remus may not be happy, and maybe even hurt his father a few after his father indulge his taboo sick fantasy with him, but at least they would have been in their nice warm bed clinging to each other as if their life depended on it.

            “I’m going to cum soon…” Remus whispered near Draco’s ear as he sped up the pace. As much as he wanted this love-making to last forever, he knew his body couldn’t hold back much longer. The pit of his stomach was already ready to burst with its impossible knots holding back his release.

            “Yes, come inside me, please. I want to feel you fill me up so badly,” the blonde boy begged, pushing his hand between them and started stroking.

            “I’m coming…I’m coming…I’m coming…!!!” Remus bit his lip until it drew blood to stop himself from screaming out Draco’s name as he emptied his load in him.

            A moment later Draco came with a hushed sob, having mixed feelings welling up inside him, mostly sadness and bitterness. Remus panted as he came a bit more before relaxing, careful not to crush Draco with his weight. Draco buried his head into Remus’ chest, sobbing as he let all those emotions that were bottled within himself ever since Remus was separated from him out in the open. Remus quickly hugged Draco, pulling him up in a sitting position and rubbing his back to calm him down.

            “Shh, shh, shh…It’s OK, Drake. It’s OK. Everything is going to be alright. I promise.”

            “No, it won’t,” Draco whined, his voice thick with tears and heartache. “You’re not there anymore with me. I’m afraid that you will never ever be with me anymore.”

            “I will be. I don’t know how to go about it, but as soon as I find a way to get out of this, I will be with you. I promise.”

            The couple spent the rest of their moments cradled in each other’s arms until the guards’ stirring sounds forced them to tear themselves apart, with Draco sneaking away before the guards could fully awaken and focus their eyes properly and Remus acting as if nothing ever happened, leaving the brokenhearted Draco running all the way back to his room and sobbing his eyes out and crying himself to sleep.

\--:--

            Severus Snape looked all through his potions in the cabinet, but was unable to locate what he was looking for. Unbeknownst to most people except those close to him, not only he was a Potions Master in Hogwarts, but he was also taking potion requests from the public as a side job to earn extra cash, since he knew since he was a child that his fortune and his job as a teacher was not going to support his lifestyle forever. Harry was there helping him to rearrange his potions in order of usage with Severus’ notes as a guideline and the Potions Master couldn’t help the urge to ask even though he’d rather locate it himself.

            “Harry love, have you seen a bluish-grey bottle around the area? The one that had a half-torn label with faded words on it that you barely read?”

            “No, I don’t see it, Severus. Why?” Harry replied, genuinely unknowing the fact that Draco had gone behind his back and snuck into the cabinet when he was not looking to take the said bottle.

            “Darn,” Severus grumbled. “Mrs. Quentin is putting high hopes over this potion and is paying good money for this. Her daughter needs this very urgently. Their bloodline is on the line.”

            “You can try the lab,” Harry suggested.

            “You’re right, love. Maybe I left it there,” Severus said as he kissed Harry on the forehead. “After you’re done, clean a cauldron for me to use, won’t you? I won’t be long.”

            “OK,” Harry grinned through his pink-tinted cheeks and did as he was told. Severus soon reached the potions lab and began searching high and low for his intended potion.

            “Now where did I put that impregnation potion? It’s just not me to be sloppy…”


	40. Chapter 40

            The new semester of Hogwarts has finally begun, with ours truly Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley and Draco Malfoy moving up a notch and entering the sixth year. The O.W.L-s exam was a killer, but they managed to pull through somehow after many final weeks of last minute study groups and countless nights of burning the midnight oil trying to cram as much info as possible into their heads. By the time the owls came in with the results during the summer, they were nervous as jumping beans as the trio opened their letters together when Draco came to visit and hang out with them for the first time in The Burrow.

            As expected, Hermione passed the subjects with flying colours and was allowed to continue on with all her subjects in her sixth year based on her aspirations to be a member in the Ministry. Ron, who aspires to be like his father, was also able to continue on with the rest of his subjects except Divination and History of Magic, because firstly, he did nasty predictions that were not up to par with Prof. Trelawney’s standards, and secondly, he was a mess in History. He could barely keep awake during Prof. Binns’ classes, let alone ace them, but then again, he couldn’t care less. Neither of those was truly important to his career choice anyway. Draco, who was looking out for being an Auror (but secretly aspires to be a Herbologist) did just as well as Hermione with most of his subjects being Exceed Expectations and some of his stronger subjects being Outstanding. Word spread fast about Pansy and the goons’ rape attempt on Harry, and even more so when they learnt that Draco saved him and had become the tightest of friends with Dumbledore’s grandson. They dare not say or do anything that may jeopardize their roots on Hogwarts, but Draco was not deaf and blind not to notice that his own house had officially branded him as a blood-traitor. He couldn’t care less what they thought of him. All he ever needed out of friendship was right there before him—Harry, Hermione and Ron—and that’s all he cared about.

            The new semester also meant a new year added into Harry’s lifeline. After looking through Harry’s birth records, he was found to be born a day before the new school semester starts and they had a spectacular party held for him. Everyone from Albus, Severus, Hermione and Ron’s household was there to celebrate it with him. Draco only brought himself because he knew his parents would never approve of Albus taking Harry in as his grandson and the last thing they wanted was to celebrate an ex-slave’s birthday, but the party was still as merry as ever. This was the first time ever that Harry had actually celebrated his birthday—he never had the luxury of even knowing when his birthday was, thus never gave a thought about it—and it was so overwhelming for him that he actually burst into tears of joy as one person after another presented him with his first birthday gifts. The best gift he got was, of course, from Severus. He had gift-wrapped his playhouse and his lion plushie Leo in one package and topped it with a kiss. All in all, it was an event worth celebrated and remembered by everyone in the mansion.

            But as the new semester progressed into its second month, Draco had somehow been feeling a little odd for the past few weeks. At first, he thought it was just because of him not being able to see Remus and also the stress of being a sixth year student, but after he started getting sick in the morning, feeling nauseous and dizzy most of the time and unable to stomach anything, he knew something was afoot. His worries increased when during their group study in the library, Ron carelessly joked that he probably was being knocked up—boasting that he had seen this on his mother when she was pregnant with Ginny—and Hermione giving him a knowing look, meaning that Ron could be right somewhere in between.

            After buying a self-pregnancy test (accompanied by Hermione in the strictest of confidence, of course) he went home that weekend and secretly but quickly snuck into his room and into the bathroom to find out. Unlike Muggle self-pregnancy tests, this sort of pregnancy test was usable for both male and female since in the magic world, conception is possible for males with the right procedures. It looked like a sort of thermometer with a red tiny ball that hovered in the middle of the tube, and it had to be stuck in a third of the length into the vagina like a tampon, and for Draco’s case, it had to be inserted anally. If the tiny ball goes upward in a high whistling note, that means the person is pregnant, and if the ball goes downward in a low humming note, it means vice versa. Following the instructions given in the box, Draco heaved a heavy sigh, took off his pants and inserted the test into his orifice.

            He knew it was only for kicks, and he was sure Ron was just joking and Hermione was being a worried wart after all, but when the test let out a high whistling note and the ball was all the way up to the peak, he couldn’t believe his eyes. He stared at the test for a full long 10 minutes, hoping that it would change to negative or hoping that he could will it back down and that it was all just a mistake, an illusion, whichever was plausible, but the red ball did not budge. It remained there at the peak without any indication of falling. Another 5 minutes later, the reality finally sank in as he suddenly fell sick again and his mind and heart began to slowly accept the cruel truth while he puked his guts out into the toilet bowl.

            He was pregnant.

            Pregnant with Remus J. Lupin’s baby.

            Jamming the pregnancy test deep into the trash can so that it wouldn’t be seen by the naked eye, he moved slowly towards his bed where his bag was and fished out the book on male pregnancies that Hermione bought for him after accompanying him to buy the test. Draco, at that time, thought Hermione was jumping into too much conclusion and refused to take the book, but now, since the tables had turned, he was secretly almost glad that Hermione gave him that authoritative motherly look of a Head Prefect and shoved the book into his bag anyway despite his protests. As he flipped through the book, he learnt that certain potions, spells or magical marriage bonds can cause pregnancy to happen (although he couldn’t recall what exactly did he do other than having sex during that secret night with Remus to get into this situation), and he was relieved to find out that his baby did not have to come out the way it got in. Pregnant males will go through all the symptoms like morning sickness, sudden food cravings, swollen feet, widening of the hips and stretch marks like a pregnant female would, but the only difference is that for a pregnant male, towards the 7th month of their pregnancy, a birth canal would form at the gap between the balls and the anus and that is where the baby would be born out of, and during the birth process, it would be just like the regular birth a pregnant woman have to go through. During that month as well, he would possibly develop a slight expanding of the breasts to enable breastfeeding until the baby is at least one year old and weaned off breast milk before it shrinks back to its normal male anatomy.

            While Draco went back to school after that shocking discovery with mixed feelings, Narcissa, on the other hand, was up to her nosy tricks again. Despite not being much of a mother to Draco, her maternal instincts still could tell that there’s something wrong with her son. When she saw her son coming home with a pregnancy test unsuccessfully hidden in his robes pocket when she went to the kitchen to get some more refill for her tea party with her friends, she had to find out. She did not straightaway confront the matter as she had guests to entertain, but as soon as Draco went to school on Monday, she, using her wand, looked through his trash secretly and found the positive self-pregnancy test. She then snooped around Draco’s room to find out what was the cause of this positive results and discovers the ‘lube’ that was hidden under the mattress. She smelt the content and immediately could tell it was an impregnation potion because she remembered Severus giving one to her for her 4th year anniversary with Lucius when she told him the week before that she had a hard time conceiving, and it was this impregnation potion that got her to have Draco, although it came with a price of having to have her uterus removed because of the trauma caused from giving birth to him.

            “Hmm…” Narcissa muttered as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Your father is not going to be very pleased when he finds out about this.”

            Meanwhile, Draco couldn’t stop thinking about the test. He did not dare tell it to Hermione or Ron, and even though they asked, he gave a lame excuse about having to show up at one of his father’s parties and forgot about the test. Nor did he dare to tell Severus or Remus for fear that either one of them would do something drastic. It was a no brainer that Remus would panic and start making rash decisions, like grabbing Draco and making a grand escape to avoid his father from discovering the truth, although the thought of eloping sounded quite romantic and exciting at most, and Severus, being god-fatherly as usual, would no doubt ask him to consider aborting the child because he was still a student and had a future and a career to look forward to. He definitely couldn’t confide to Harry either because he was bound to tell Severus and/or Albus about it, and the old geezer was the last person he would want to know about his condition.

            _Could it really be…Could I really be?_ The question of denial continuously played over and over in his mind until his head hurts.

            Later during the day, despite the fact that it was not a weekend, Draco came home. The only thing that occupied his mind at the moment was that he needed to get rid of that test fast. He didn't want his father to find out, not after what he said about Remus. If he were to know, he would definitely skin Remus alive for sure, and he did not want that to happen to his beloved. He went to his room as fast as he could and looked for the test and the instruction box, but they were not there.

            “What the…?” Draco gasped in horror as he literally emptied out all his trashcans to look for it. “I could’ve sworn that…”

            “Looking for this, boy?”

            Draco’s eyes went wide as he saw his mother dangling the positive test tube and the instruction box in her hand smugly. Apparently Narcissa had heard Draco returning home and waited for the opportune moment to show up in his room to let him know that the cat was out of the bag. Draco bit his inner cheeks as he rushed forward to the only person he would rather slit his throat than to tell his deepest, darkest secrets to.

            “Mother! Give it back!” Draco exclaimed as he reached for it.

            “Ah, ah, ah,” Narcissa wriggled her finger at her son, holding the test away from his reach. “Not until you tell me who the father of your child is.”

            “None of your business, Mother,” Draco growled, glaring at her.

            “Oh, I beg to differ, boy,” Narcissa looked mockingly at the test, entering her son’s room and closed the door behind her. “My son is going to make an honest grandmother out of me. I think this is perfectly my business. Hmm…Your father hasn’t known yet, but when I tell him, he would be very, very unhappy, what with you just finishing O.W.L-s and into the early terms of your 6th year…”

            “Please don’t tell him, Mother,” Draco begged; his face couldn’t go any paler. “He doesn’t need to know…”

            “I can’t promise you that. He is my husband and your father after all. Besides, sooner or later you are bound to show.”

            “I…” Draco knew she spoke the truth. No matter how well he hides it, it was bound to show, and according to the books, unless he was under a medi-witch or wizard’s supervision, he cannot cast any spells on himself without hurting the baby, even if it means a concealing spell. He lowered his head in dismay, “Just…Please don’t tell him.”

            “Then who is the father of my bastard grandchild-to-be?” Narcissa demanded.

            “My child is not a bastard!” Draco protested. No one calls his child given by his beloved a bastard, even if it _was_ conceived out of wedlock.

            “You’re not married; heaven forbids the father of the child may be younger than you. So whose is it? Crabbe? Goyle? Blaise? That Weasel boy maybe?”

            “Eww, Mother, that is disgusting! I would never let any of them ten feet near me! Besides, Crabbe and Goyle had been suspended, remember? They can’t come to school even if they want to.”

            “Are you going to tell me or not?” Narcissa continued to probe, dangling the test threatening at him. “Or do I have to find out myself from the school?”

            _That would definitely be the highlight of the century,_ Draco grumbled sarcastically, but he knew that his mother was now a Malfoy, and she would find out about things she wanted to know if she tried. She found out about his pregnancy. He might as well get it over and done with before she steps her foot into the school and lets the whole school know that Draco Malfoy, son of the member of the Ministry of Magic, has been knocked up.

            “If you promise not to tell Father…” Draco lowered his voice so that only his mother could hear him, “It…It was Remus…”

            “That…That monster?!” Narcissa shrieked in shock. She couldn’t control her hand as she let one fly across her blonde son’s face. “You let yourself get knocked up by that monster?! How could you?!”

            “Because I love him and he loves me, that’s why!” Draco said as he nursed his cheek. It wasn’t as hard as Lucius did him, but it stung nonetheless. “I expect you would understand that, Mother, given you’ve married Father like forever.”

            “Pfft! Your father and I is a different thing altogether, boy! Who could love a beast like that? Where is your dignity as a Malfoy? You know that your father has forbidden you to even think about that half-breed, and yet you go feeding yourself with impregnation potion and doing it with that…that creature! I wouldn’t have mind if you got yourself knocked up by Blaise or anyone of your classmates. At least they are an upright lot. But with that beast?! What were you thinking?!”

            “I…I what?” Draco gaped at his mother’s outburst, not really comprehending what she was saying about impregnation potion and all that whatnot.

            “Don’t play dumb with me, boy!” Narcissa scolded as she threw the so-called ‘lube’ she took out of her dress pocket at his feet, “What do you call this?”

            “Uh…” Draco blushed slightly at the sight of the bluish-grey bottle. “Oil for…lubrication…?”

            Narcissa eyed at him in surprise. She tried to search for any sign of deceit or fakery in her son’s face but found none. He was genuinely surprised and ignorant at what she had revealed to him.

            “You seriously don’t know? That, my son,” Narcissa pointed at the bottle like it was the most offensive thing in the world, “is impregnation potion. Good gods of Merlin, I can’t believe I raised such a careless son.”

            “It…It is…?” Draco picked the potion up to read the hopelessly faded and torn label on the bottle but couldn’t find any sign that says it was impregnation potion. But since his mother said it was, then it had to be true. Her tone did not show that she was lying about it. “But how…”

            “Unlike other cheap impregnating potions, this is one of the strongest ones that can be used both for hetero and homosexual couples,” Narcissa explained, remembering what Severus’ notes that came along with the potion explained to her back then. “It is one of your godfather’s best works. It has to be inserted through the nether regions before sexual intercourse, and success rate is usually high. I can’t believe you’d use it on yourself without even finding out what it is first! What have your father been teaching you about? Obviously you weren’t listening.”

            “I just…I just thought it was oil…” Draco replied as he lowered his head. _Shit!_

            “Ah, well, what’s done is done. No point crying over spilt milk, I suppose,” Narcissa smirked, “But if you don’t want your father to know about this, I suggest you better go look for an expert medi-witch or medi-wizard real quick to get rid of it. I happen to know someone who would do it for a small fee and in complete secrecy…”

            “No!” Draco instinctively grabbed his still flat stomach. “I will not get rid of my baby! It is mine, Remus gave it to me, and you have no right to take it away from me!”

            “I am your mother, and I have the right to do what I believe is best for you, even if it means sacrificing my chance at being a grandmother!” Narcissa shoved Draco’s shoulder, making him hit the bedpost. “I will not allow my son to carry a cursed creature’s child! And I’m dead sure your father will not even hear of his grandchild being a monster!”

            “Then I don’t want to be your son!” Draco yelled back challengingly. “You can just kick me out of the house or disown me if you want to, but I am not letting you kill our baby!”

            Narcissa glared venomously at Draco. The younger blonde knew he had said something he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t care less. He may be in denial before about the legitimacy of the pregnancy, but hearing his mother threatening to kill the offspring of his beloved, his maternal instincts kicked in, and his heart told him to protect it at all costs, family be damned.

            “You will regret saying that,” Narcissa growled as she threw the test at Draco’s chest and stomped out of his room, slamming it shut.

            Draco picked up the test, grabbed the heaviest piece of object he could get his hands on and smashed the test, the bottle of impregnation potion and the instruction box into smithereens until he vented out all his anger before using his magic to send them into oblivion and locking himself in his room for the rest of the day, refusing to come out.


	41. Chapter 41

            The Malfoy manor was peaceful as the household were about doing their own thing, especially with Draco sitting quietly in his own room doing his homework, Narcissa writing to her sister Bellatrix and Lucius snug in his warm office going through some paperwork from the Ministry. Remus was still kept locked in the coal cellar waiting for his mysterious fate, but occasionally he would be roughly shouted at to bring out the coal to the door because some of the hired help needed the coal for their daily household use. It got the poor half-werewolf dark and dirty with soot, but at least he was doing something than just sitting there listlessly.

            Draco had finally come clean with Hermione and Ron after he had enough pestering from the Old Married Couple. He had wanted to keep a secret until he could think of some brilliant plan to cover his tracks and get him out of the dump, but after being nagged day and night for almost a week by Hermione to ‘do the test’, he literally used magic to drag both Hermione and Ron into the haunted bathroom, yelled at Moaning Myrtle to get lost (making her cry and wail as she swooped into one of the toilet bowls and disappeared out of sight) and cast a strong Silencing Charm around the whole bathroom before blurting out the truth. Ron exclaimed “Bloody hell” and made many rants of disbelief as usual and Hermione, being the rational of the two, suggested that Draco should consider terminating the child. As Draco unconsciously had his hand down his still-flat belly to stroke it, he could still recall the tense conversation he had in the haunted bathroom…

\--:--

**_FLASHBACK BEGINS…_ **

            _“You cannot bloody get knocked up in the middle of your schooling years!” Ron shouted. “What were you thinking? Where’s the careful little Draco we all know?”_

_“I was fucking horny, alright?!” Draco growled exasperatedly. “I haven’t had sex like, forever, and I missed Remus! I miss being with him, both body and soul! How would I have time to even think of looking at labels when I’m freaking busy trying to figure out how to get to him in the first place without being busted!”_

_“Well, still you got busted! Your mother obviously doesn’t seem to be the dumb blonde many people think she is.”_

_“Well, technically I didn’t count on her actually giving a damn about me…” Draco admitted before Hermione held up her hand to stop this senseless bickering._

_“Seriously, Draco, what are you going to do about the child?”_

_“I…well…I’m gonna keep it, of course,” Draco blushed, a little surprised at himself of how he came to this decision so easily._

_“Have you ever thought of how are you going to keep your pregnancy from prying eyes, for starters?” Hermione had her hands on her hips. “Let’s list all your facts: you’re only 16 years old, you’re just in the beginning of your 6 th year, your body is still too young to adjust to a full-fledged pregnancy, your baby may possibly have a high chance of being ‘babies’ instead, and…”_

_“Wait, wait, wait,” Draco interrupted. “What do you mean…’babies’?”_

_“Am I going to be the only person that reads among us?” Hermione rolled her eyes and flailed her arms in defeat. “Remus is a half-werewolf, right? All werewolves are partially under the canine species, and when it comes to canines, they_ always _have multiples for offspring. Since your lover is a half-werewolf, it is a no-brainer that he may have inherited the traits of a werewolf siring multiples.”_

_“Then that means…” Ron eyed Draco warily, his eyes screaming expressions like ‘twins’, ‘triplets’ and ‘quads’._

_“So? There’s always the concealing spell,” Draco replied indignantly._

_“I remember clearly that the book I got you stated that you cannot cast spells on yourself unless you are under the supervision of a medi-witch or medi-wizard,” Hermione noted. “And given your reputation and your family background, I don’t think I’ll trust any doctor in keeping your pregnancy a secret, no matter how much hush money you pay them. In fact, I wouldn’t trust your mother in keeping your secret either.”_

_“I’ll…I’ll cross that bridge when it comes. Besides, Father is away on a business trip. He won’t be back that soon. Maybe Mother might forget about it…”_

_“I think you should just get rid of it.”_

_“What?! No!!!” Draco shouted as he hugged his belly the same way he did when Narcissa suggested the same thing._

_“Mione!” Ron scolded. “I would’ve thought you being a woman would’ve at least gone for compassion rather than rationale over this situation.”_

_“This is not about compassion or rationale!” Hermione groaned. “This is about being responsible and doing the right thing! You are under-aged and you sure as hell are not doing yourself any favours letting yourself have this sort of burden before your time! Who knows what sort of complications that may occur during the pregnancy? Your body is not exactly at its prime age of having children and the possibility of having multiples will take a toll on your body. There is a possibly miscarriage where it would be detrimental to your health or maybe you might die during birth because of your weakened state during your pregnancy._

_“Besides, your mother has already found out about you and it is a matter of time before your father finds out as well! You don’t want to tell Remus because you’re afraid what crazy thing he might do and you don’t want to tell Prof. Snape because you know he’ll suggest the same thing I just did. What are you going to do? Run away from home and going through the pregnancy without any professional help whatsoever? Give birth to triplets in the middle of a dark alley? Come on, you know as well as I do you cannot survive one day out there without at least using up a whole pouch of Galleons a day, and outside, people would still recognize you and take you home and it’s still a lose-lose situation!”_

_Draco, for once, didn’t know what to retaliate to the insufferable know-it-all, because deep down inside, he knew there was some truth in what she just said._

_“Look, it’s still at the early stages,” Hermione sighed as she gestured Ron to show her his pocket watch to tell the time, “it’s still not too late to have second thoughts about the pregnancy. I would still suggest abortion, but you might want to discuss this with a reliable medi-witch or medi-wizard to weigh out your options, or maybe try discussing with Prof. Snape. He is, after all, your closest family that can actually keep a secret. See you at History later, Draco.”_

_Draco did not reply and didn’t even see the Old Married Couple off as he continued to stare at his hand that lay on his belly._

**_FLASHBACK ENDS…_ **

\--:--

            While Draco continued to contemplate his fate, his mother Narcissa was up to her tricks again. She had been good enough not to press the issue of Draco’s pregnancy, making Draco believe that she would not be opening her golden mouth anytime soon, but in truth, she was just distracting her son with her fake code of silence long enough for her husband to return home from his business trip with the Ministry. She couldn’t care less whether her husband have any mistresses when he was away, since she herself have a few collection of men behind her closet and they have respected each other’s colourful life outside the manor, but when he’s home in the manor, he was expected to behave like the man of the house, which includes listening to all the things his wife had to say.

            As soon as she saw Lucius sitting at his desk tiring his eyes out on all the heavy paperwork, she knocked on the door and did not wait to be allowed in to enter, flashing him a smile and greeting him, “Hello, love.”

            “Ah, hello, darling,” Lucius looked up from his paperwork, his intent to scold whoever entered without his permission dissipating. “What brings you here?”

            “Oh, nothing, really,” Narcissa replied, sitting on his desk and moving over all his papers to one side of the desk before leaning in to kiss her husband on the lips, “How has my husband been?”

            “The usual,” Lucius replied as he kissed back. “All this pile work is giving me a headache, and this trivial and unnecessary business trip is not helping either. Honestly, I don’t understand why _I_ have to come along just to convince a stupid Muggle Prime Minister to sign an approval of using one of their little islands near the border as an Unplottable for a training ground for the new Auror intakes. Not to mention recently that old man Dumbledore had taken in Severus’ ex-slave as his grandson. I’m still a little sore about unable to dissuade the others from approving his adoption proposal.”

            “Aww, poor thing,” Narcissa cooed while she stroked her husband’s silver-blonde mane with one hand and undoing his shirt with the other, “Well, to tell the truth, I do have reasons as to why I’m here. You see, I heard the juiciest piece of news ever.”

            “I do love a little gossip. It’s not another one of your news where someone else’s wife is bedding another man, is it? I swear, those ladies cannot come up with a much more original scandal.”

            “Nope. It’s something much better than the last time I told you about Trixia bedding her twin brother.”

            “Oh? Do tell. It might ease my headache a little.”

            “I got something else as well that might do the trick,” Narcissa lowered her sleeve suggestively until a little bit of her cleavage was revealed. Lucius grinned at the sight of it, his paperwork totally ignored.

            “Mmm…I’m getting excited just hearing you say that.”

            “You need to be for what I’m about to tell you,” she whispered, “Move the chair out a bit.”

            Lucius did so and allowed Narcissa to do whatever she wanted with him. Whenever he was tired of being the one in charge, he would let his wife dominate him and let her do most of the work. The way she manhandled him during their first few months of marriage was definitely kinky and mind-blowing, and that was before Bellatrix suggested they should get sex slaves to make sex life much more exciting. Narcissa slipped onto his lap and undid his pants.

            “I went into our little Dragon’s room the other week.”

            “Really? How intruding of you. Don’t you respect our son’s privacy?” Lucius scolded, though his tone sounded teasing instead of really scolding. He had always known Narcissa to be a little mischievous and liked that side of her sometimes.

            “Oh, you know I do, so that why I did it,” she laughed, pulling his man meat out. “Guess what I found? Pull my dress up.”

            “What did you find?” Lucius asked as he did as he was told.

            “I found this little interesting device in his trash. I used it once before,” the woman replied but not exactly answering his question, slowly lowering herself on him. Narcissa Annabell Black Malfoy never got on her knees for anyone, so Lucius had expected not to get a blowjob, but the upside was that years of having an insatiable libido made the woman get turned on very easily at the slightest stimulation, so there was no need for him to go through a very long foreplay to get his wife ready for him. With just a few teasing on her clit using only the tip of his cock, it was enough to make Narcissa as wet as a fountain.

            “Mmh…” Lucius moaned as he felt the inner walls of his wife’s pussy grip him deliciously. “You’re still tight as ever…So what sort of device was it?”

            “Well, I used that 16 years ago to find out that I had little Draco in my belly.”

            “What…?” Lucius finally got the idea of what ‘device’ his wife found. He wanted to react but Narcissa was riding him, making him hard to even get up. “What…What is a thing like that…doing in our Dragon’s room…?”

            “I guess he wanted to make sure he was pregnant,” Narcissa shrugged and rode him hard, her breathing growing erratic.

            “Our…Our Dragon…is pregnant…?!”

            “Yes. Though I’m not sure how far along is he. He wouldn’t tell me. Ah, Luc, harder…”

            “Whose it it…?” Lucius demanded as he thrust harder, fueled by anger from the news his wife told.

            “If I tell you, you will leave me here unsatisfied,” Narcissa, unable to see the furious glint in her husband’s eyes due to her own lust, continued to tease.

            “Fine, then I’ll just make you tell me.”

            Holding his wife’s hips hard, he pushed her up and down, literally pounding her onto his cock too deep. Normally Narcissa didn’t mind taking things rough, but this took her completely by surprise and her pussy was unprepared for the rough banging.

            “Hey! Ow, hey! That hurts!” Narcissa yelled in pain.

            “Are you going to tell me?”

            “If you so much as stop fucking me or make me bleed, you better watch out where you’ll sleep tonight. I have the right mind to make you sleep at the stables if I want to.”

            “Fine,” Lucius slowed down a little, but continued to ram in deep inside her. “But you are going to tell me as soon as I’m done with you.”

            “Whatever,” Narcissa pouted, her body quite out of the mood now that her vagina was feeling more towards aching than enjoying. Lucius thrust a little faster as he was close to coming, wanting to get done as soon as possible to know who knocked his son up. Narcissa laid her head on his shoulder, the increased pace of his thrusting starting to make her feel much better and getting close to coming as well. When Lucius announced in his impatient groan that he was about to come, Narcissa waited until the last moment when she felt that exploding orgasmic feeling building up inside her before she moved her hips as well to help him along, whispering Remus’ name into her husband’s ear.

            The shock of hearing Remus’ name caused Lucius to explode sooner than expected, emptying himself into Narcissa before his wife had a chance to reach her orgasm. Disappointed, she got up and off him with a frustrated grunt and muttered something about going to take a shower before storming out of the office angrily. Lucius couldn’t care less that his wife was left hanging and unsatisfied; he waited until his orgasm calmed down, then magicked away all traces of his and his wife’s sexual intercourse, put on his pants and stormed to Draco’s room. Without even bothering to knock, he barged in and marched towards his son.

            “Father?” Draco looked up, almost used to Lucius’ barging in unannounced.

            Lucius did not say anything, but went up to Draco and slapped him hard, making him fall off the chair and on his knees. Draco didn’t need to think long to know what was going on.

            “Father, please, let me explain,” Draco almost stuttered, holding his throbbing cheek.

            “So, you know why I’m doing this, eh?” Lucius folded his arms against his chest. “At least you’re smart on that.”

            “Why else would you come? Mother told you about me, I presume,” Draco replied. He stayed on the floor, not daring to get as he had his arms around his belly. “I swear I didn’t know it was pregnancy potion. Honest.”

            “I do not have a son who is that careless!” Lucius spat, then pointed accusingly at him. “You must’ve done that deliberately to spite me!

            “I didn’t, Father. I swear I didn’t.”

            “I don’t believe you! You know that I don’t approve your secret relationship with that monster, and you were angry that I locked him up, so you knocked yourself up with his spawn! I will not allow it! I will go to your Uncle Severus and whip up an abortion potion right away!”

            “No! I won’t take it!” Draco shouted, hugging his middle even tighter. “I won’t ever give up my baby!”

            “You listen here, boy!” Lucius growled and grabbed Draco’s collar. “I will not allow my son, a purebred to give birth to a half-breed spawn like that monster! You _will_ take it, even if I have to tell my guards to hold you down and force-feed you with it!”

            “NO!!!” Draco screamed and kicked his father by the balls, forcing the older man to let go of him. In a dash, Draco went running out of his room and out of the door. He just knew that he had to get to the school. It was only seven miles away but he didn’t realize how long seven miles was. He didn’t want to use the family carriage for fear of his father ordering men to halt all family transport. He cursed inwardly for being so stupid not to take Salazar out and ride it instead, but then again, running would probably be much safer for his baby than trying to ride a broom or having his body bobbing up and down on a horse.

            Lucius, after nursing his bruised balls as Draco escaped his grasp, chased after him but realized he was too far away to chase after him, and goodness knows how fast the boy could outrun him. Remembering Severus was at school most of the time and knowing that Severus had always been a down-to-earth man who would not tolerate any indecencies from the students, especially his own, he was sure that even though they were not in good terms at the moment, the greasy git would at least share his sentiments of having under-aged unmarried young students pregnant was unacceptable.

            “Hmph, idiot boy!” Lucius growled to himself as he apparated into the school and made it there at the gate entrance within minutes. He turned around and could see that his son was still a long way from the school and made his way towards the dungeons. “That little bastard. I’ll get red of that spawn in him no matter what!”

            Severus was working on another potion courtesy from a special order by the public and was teaching Harry how to properly cut ginger roots when Lucius came rushing into the lab without knocking. Harry, at upon seeing Lucius, quickly hid behind Severus out of sight.

            “Severus, I’ve got a request that cannot wait,” Lucius demanded.

            “Go away, Malfoy,” Severus replied icily. “You’re not welcomed here.”

            “I won’t leave, Severus. Not until you hear me out.”

            Severus glared venomously at the blonde before telling Harry to go back to Albus’ office and stay there until he called for him. Harry hurriedly ran out of the lab, not daring to look back at Lucius who stole a glance at the boy as he disappeared out of sight.

            “What the hell do you want, Malfoy?” Severus growled, making Lucius face him so that he would not lay another eyeful on his beloved.

            “I’ll be blunt with you, Severus,” Lucius got down to the point. “I want you to brew me an abortion potion.”

            “What?!” Severus was genuinely shocked at his request.

            “You heard me. Make me an abortion potion.”

            “For whom? You?” Severus raised an eyebrow.

            “You wish,” Lucius glared. “No, it's for my son, your godson.”

            “And why is that?”

            “Do I have to explain myself every time I ask you to do something?”

            “As you are very well aware of, _Malfoy_ ,” Severus said in a deadly voice, “we are no longer friends, much less family, and unless you explain yourself, I don’t see any reason why I should help you with whatever sick fantasies you have in mind. If you’re not happy with it, I suggest you go find someone else to do your dirty work. Now get out of my office before I…”

            “Uncle Sev…!”

            Both men turned to see Draco stumbling into the lab, his face flushed as he tried to get his breathing under control. Draco was in his regular clothes and Severus, with his keen eye for details, could tell from the slightly bump of Draco’s middle that it was exactly the main reason why Lucius came in with that unexpected request. He decided to let the situation play it out a little longer.

            “Ah, you got here just in time. I was just about to ask your godfather to do our family a big favour.”

            “Please, Uncle Sev,” Draco wanted to rush to Severus and beg, but was held back by his father. “Please! I know what I did was wrong! I know I should’ve consulted you first! Please! Please don’t kill my baby! Please!”

            “My son here,” Lucius had a tight grip on Draco, forbidding him to come close to Severus, “got a little careless and had a little…‘accident’, so to speak. Now if you would just kindly make the potion, we will be on our way and won’t bother you ever again with such trivial family matters.”

            “Hmm…” Severus looked from Lucius to Draco and back again. Quietly, he went up to Lucius and pried harshly at Lucius’ hand to let Draco go before pulling the boy behind him. When Lucius stood there expectantly for him to do something, Severus just nonchalantly continued, “As I was saying, Malfoy, get out of my office.”

            “You…You won’t help me?” Lucius’ face went a little pink with anger.

            “As I said, Malfoy, we are no longer friends nor are we family. You did this to yourself, so you reap what you sow.”

            “Are you implying I’m to blame for what mistakes my son had done?”

            “I am implying just that.”

            “Do you have any idea what sort of child your godson is carrying?!” Lucius exclaimed as he slammed his fist on the lab desk, pointing at his son who was sobbing behind Severus with one hand around his belly and one hand grasping onto Severus’ robes tight. “It's a half-breed! And it’s by his half-werewolf sex slave no less! What would people think of my son having a half-breed’s child?!”

            “They would finally know that you have fallen off that pedestal you so desperately cling to, that’s all.”

            “Why you…” Lucius quickly brandished his wand in anger, prompting Severus to automatically brandish his as well as self-defense. “I challenge you to a duel! If I win, you will make the potion and feed it to him yourself while I hold him down!”

            “And if I win,” Severus replied deathly, secretly glad Lucius had come to this point he had longed for, “you will never be able to get hard again.”

            “Fair enough. Let’s duel. You choose the place. I can beat you anywhere, just like I beat you always when we were children.”

            “No, please don’t do this,” Draco begged in tears. “It’s not worth it!”

            “This is not your place to question us, boy. You want to keep the bastard child, you’ll have to suffer the consequences. Now shut up and step aside while we have our adult conversation.”

            “The lake by your house,” Severus decided. “That way no one will get hurt from stray spells.”

            “Fine with me. We will do it tonight, after we both get off work.”

            “Very well. Now leave. I don’t want your stench in my office for much longer.”

            Lucius waited until Severus put away his wand before he pocketed his. Giving one last venomous glare at his son, he stormed out of the lab and out of the school. As soon as he was gone, Draco wrapped his arms around Severus’ waist, not caring if he was wailing uncharacteristically like a baby.

            “Please, Uncle Sev! Don't do this! I’ll run away! I’ll quit school! I’ll leave the family! I’ll do anything! Just don’t duel with my father! You have no idea what he's capable of!”

            “I was his friend for many years, Drake. I know what he is capable of and he knows the same about me.”

            “Why does it have to come down to this?!” Draco fell onto his knees and sobbed really hard. “All because I thought I stole a jar of lube from your potions cabinet…”

            “So that’s where the impregnation potion went,” Severus nodded in comprehension, finally getting the whole picture. Kneeling down, he pulled Draco into his arms and whispered, “Draco, I will not let my godson be forced to drink that potion. I may not approve of having my family being knocked up at such a young age, but I am not like your father who is not beyond eliminating an innocent life to save face. You want to keep the baby, right?”

            Draco nodded desperately, “It’s Remy and my baby…The baby of my beloved…I would never kill it…”

            “Then I will not let him make you take the potion. You are the only one from the Malfoy family I would ever trust and love. We will figure ways to get about this situation but I assure you, you will have this baby.”

            “Thank you, Uncle Sev…” Draco hugged his godfather gratefully. “Thank you so much…”

            As Draco slowly succumbed to his fatigue and fell into a dreamless sleep in Severus’ arms, Severus secretly looked forward to this duel.

            “It’s time to settle this once and for all, Lucius Malfoy.”


	42. Chapter 42

            Later that day, after sorting out all the paperwork and attended a few meetings, Lucius got off work early. He couldn't wait to settle the score with Severus and prove once and for all that he was far superior than he ever may be. The hired help were surprised to see their master back home earlier than he usually did, but they were not ones to question their master’s actions. They were to be seen but not heard unless required to, anyways. Lucius went into the study and briskly flipped through the Daily Prophet while waiting for the time to come to show his dear old god-brother who the boss is.

            Severus, on the other hand, made sure Draco was asleep before he headed out. He was going to show Lucius at his own game. It had been quite long since they dueled, as he recalled when he was sitting on his carriage on the way to Lucius’ manor. The last time they dueled was just a friendly match between each other when dueling was in season. Lucius had beaten him straight out then, sending him with a battered body and a bruised pride, and Severus had been practicing his moves ever since to better him. Gilderoy Lockhart, the school’s last DADA teacher during Hermione and Ron’s 2nd year before Mad Eye Moody took over on the 3rd, did try to start a Dueling Club to bring the dueling season back, but was totally knocked out by Severus’ Disarming Charm when they made a demonstration for the students, and had to be admitted to the mental institution centre of St Mungo’s throughout his whole natural life when he accidentally tried to manhandle Fluffy, causing his spell to backfire on him and sent his mind elsewhere.

            Severus broke out of his musing when he felt the carriage stop and the Malfoy Manor in sight. _Not a moment too soon,_ Severus thought to himself and got off the carriage, telling the driver to wait for him. He told the butler what he wanted as soon as he got in and made his way to the promised location of their duel. The butler nodded and went to the study, notifying his Master about Severus’ arrival.

            “Master Malfoy, Master Snape is here to see you. He said he’ll be waiting for you by the lake.”

            “About time,” Lucius chuckled and put away the newspaper that he wasn’t really reading anyway. “Very well, I will go meet him personally.”

            So saying, Lucius walked out of his study towards the lake by his house. As expected, Severus was there already waiting for him. Lucky for him, the Potions Master didn’t have his wand out yet and he even had his back to Lucius, not knowing that he was already there behind him. _Careless as always, dear god-brother,_ Lucius smirked as he went up to him quietly. Stealthily, he took out his wand and touched the tip dangerously at Severus’ nape of the neck.

            “You’re getting sloppy, god-brother,” Lucius sneered, glad that he had the upper hand. Unfortunately for him, Severus was wiser than that. In a quick move Severus had his wand in his hand and swerved behind Lucius, mirroring his actions.

          “Not sloppy, Lucius. I just know you. You didn’t think I hadn’t heard sneaking up on me from a mile away, did you? Please, I can hear a student’s whisper from the back of the Great Hall amongst the din of chattering people if I wanted to.”

            Lucius spun round to avoid the wand, “Alright. You’ve got a keen sense, I’ll give you that. You do remember our deal if whoever loses, don’t you?”

            “Yes, I do. But I don’t plan on losing.”

            “Very well then. Shall we begin our duel?”

            “Yes, we shall.”

            With that, both of them did the ritual moves of dueling. After bowing and holding their wands up in the dueling salute, both of them walked ten paces away from each other and posed in a dueling mode. Severus put up his wand in stance and made the first move before Lucius could.

            “ _Confringo_ _!_ ”

            “ _Protego_ _!_ ” Lucius countered the charm, then cast his own. “ _Diffindo_ _!_ ”

            Soon, a hectic duel ensued. The commotion was starting to draw people’s attention to look out of the window to see what was going on. None of them dared to come out of the manor for fear of being hit by random spells and getting themselves killed, but a fight between two of the most powerful aristocrats and Dark Arts users was not something they’d want to miss out. Even Narcissa, who just got home from her Secret Wives’ Club at her sister Bellatrix’s home, joined the audience and watched in earnest to see how the duel might turn out.

            Lucius tried to cast a Splitting Charm again to send Severus into pieces, but Severus blocked it and sent out a stinging hex. The spell scratched the blonde’s arm, leaving a very bad stinging feeling, but he was not going to be deterred by that. He quickly cast a charm that creates a slamming impact on Severus, in which Severus barely jumped out of the way, the spell knocked over the tree behind him. Had he not moved out of the way, he would’ve met the same fate as the tree did.

            “ _Levicorpus_ _!_ ” Lucius shouted, casting the spell. This time, it worked. Severus was lifted to the air, but that didn’t stop the Potions Master from casting his spell as well.

            “ _Stupefy!_ ”

            Lucius ducked before the stunning spell could hit him. Laughing out loud, he brandished his wand again, shouting victoriously, “I didn’t go through all our childhood together for nothing, you know! _Sectumsempra_ _!_ ”

            Since he was still in air, Severus couldn’t get away. His arms and sides were opened by the slashing spell, sending blood all over the place. Severus winced a little before saying, “Well, I hope you are not attached to your hair. _Incendo_ _!_ ”

            Lucius had not expected Severus to use that spell. Within seconds, his head and most of one side of his body caught fire. Without thinking, he immediately made a run for the first place he could think of to get rid of the fire: the lake. Severus fell to the ground as Lucius’ hold on him with the spell was no longer in effect. He quickly closed the wounds but he knew that wasn’t enough. He needed a potion to reduce the shock and recover the blood-loss as soon as he got home, but first there was a deal to settle. He waited for Lucius to climb out of the lake, coughing and spluttering as he did.

            “You left the field, Lucius. You forfeit to me.”

            “You…You cheated! You made me leave the field!” Lucius shouted in denial, coughing out whatever got into his mouth.

            “That is the whole point of a duel, Lucius. Either to get kicked out of the field or be defeated with the strongest spell. And I did not cheat. If you knew your water spells, like you should, you could have brought the water to you instead of going to it instead. Honestly, you’re the one getting sloppy.”

            “I will not stand for this!” Lucius glared darkly at Severus, dripping wet. Severus tried to hold back an amused smile. Again, due to his anger, he had failed to realize that a simple drying spell would do to spare him from this sorry state.

            “You can and you will. I know a bleeding spell that’ll make you bleed from every pore of your skin. I would love to use it.”

            Lucius fumed for a while before letting it go. He knew better than to try and tempt Severus to do something he would regret making him do, especially when he had challenged Severus to make him dangle naked by the toes out of the attic window when he refused to give back the younger man’s toy horse when they were 11. “Fine. I accept my loss. But you have no idea what sort of mistake you’re doing letting my son carry that half-breed’s child.”

            “I think I do. And since you are so hell bent on wanting to rid the child at the sight of the boy, he will be under my custody from now on until you’ve come to your senses, and he will be staying at school with me.”

            “Well, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and fulfill the bargain before I change my mind about this.”

            “With joy,” Severus smiled as he cast the spell.

            Lucius winced as he could feel a deep heat emitting from his groin. From the pronunciation of the spell, he knew he was being cast the impotence spell. He cursed inwardly at Severus for giving him the worst punishment ever for him. After a few moments, the deed was done.

            Severus turned to walk away, saying, “You know you earned it, Lucius. If you ever touch my Harry again or try to come even an inch closer to Draco to cause him and his child any harm, I swear I _will_ kill you. From this moment forth,” he stopped and looked over his shoulder at him, “We are no longer family.”

            Lucius remained kneeling at his position dripping wet as he cursed Severus again and again.

\--:--

            Draco had woken up from his nap to see Severus panting on his chair. Severus had finally made it back to the school and to his room, and collapsed in his chair. He had lost too much blood during the fight and it took all his willpower not to faint in the carriage on the way to school. The incantation was wearing off and the wounds have reopened. The young blonde could see blood seeping from his robes as Severus muttered more incantations to seal up the wounds tighter.

            “Uncle Sev? What happened?” Draco asked worriedly, not daring to come close. The sight and stench of blood was making him feel a little giddy.

            “I need a wound-healing and blood-replenishing potion,” Severus panted. “They are in my storage room, one with a white and green label and one with a blue and red label.”

            Draco quickly rushed to the storage room to look for the said potions. He soon found it and passed it to Severus, who in turn downed them one by one with one gulp.

            “Should I get Harry for you?”

            “No, he should not know about this. Maybe later, when I look better.”

            “I’m…I’m sorry for dragging you into this, Uncle Sev… This should’ve been my problem…”

            “I am fine, Draco. Just a little rest I will be fine.”

            “What should I do now?” Draco hugged his belly sadly. “I know I’ll be expelled for sure, and I can’t go home like this…”

            “You are under my protection right now. I will make sure that you can still carry on going to school and carry the child to term at the same time. You are not going home, not with those vultures of a parent waiting to tear you apart.”

            “But…But I can’t just leave Remus behind!” Draco exclaimed, remembering the missing piece of the puzzle. “He’s still in confinement! God knows what my father would do to him!”

            “I am sorry, Draco. I can’t do anything for him. I have to worry about you first.”

            “I have to get him back!” Draco started to panic. “I can’t leave him alone there! I…I can try to sneak in and get him outta there! I know every nook and cranny of the house; I can get Remy out…”

            “You will do nothing of the sort,” Severus placed his hands on his shoulders. “Heaven knows your father might have acquired other help to create an abortion potion, just waiting for you to come and make you take it.”

            “But…But I have to do something, or I’ll go crazy thinking about him there…”

            “You will stay here and take care of yourself. We will think about getting him out after your baby is born. Think of yourself first.”

            Unfortunately, Severus’ words fell on deaf ears. Draco was too worried to listen to Severus’ comforting words and began to hyperventilate. Severus quickly held Draco in his arms and rubbed Draco’s back to ease his breathing.

            “Breathe, Draco, breathe. Nice and slow. Breathe.”

            The younger blonde tried to but ended up succumbing to his morning sickness and vomited on Severus’ sleeve and onto the floor. Severus patted his back to make him let all out easier before conjuring a glass of lukewarm water.

            “Drink, Draco. You need lots of fluids right now.”

            Draco waited until his vomiting calmed down before taking the water to drink it slowly. The drink felt a little tangy to the taste. The look Draco gave Severus told the older man enough that he sort of figured out something was in the water.

            “I added a little potion in it. I want you to sleep; you need it.”

            “But I just woke up, Uncle Sev,” Draco protested.

            “Well, you need some more,” Severus insisted. “Trying to pretend to be normal and doing the usual school workload like all your fellow sixth-year peers are doing is not good for you, especially in your condition right now.”

            “Will it hurt the baby?” Draco asked worriedly. “The potion, I mean.”

            “It’s a mild calming potion. It will not hurt it. I’m your godfather and a Potions Master. Would I deliberately hurt my upcoming grand godchildren?”

            Draco shook his head, “No. you wouldn’t. I trust you, Uncle Sev.”

            “Good, now finish the drink and I will take you to where you’ll be staying in the meantime. Don’t worry,” Severus smiled in a way only Draco knew was genuine. “I will go talk to Headmaster Dumbledore about this and see what we can do about carrying on with your studies in your condition. I won’t betray nor will I forsake you. You have my word.”

            Draco nodded and finished the drink. Slowly, as Severus tucked him in, the drink’s effect kicked in and Draco succumbed to the need of sleep. Making sure Draco was deep in Dreamland, Severus closed the door and made his way quickly out of his dorm and to Albus’ office.


	43. Chapter 43

            After reciting the password and getting the clearance to enter Albus’ office, he went in only to find he was not there, like he had half-hoped for. Instead, Harry was there, sitting next to the bookshelves burying his face in a book entitled “Magical Incantations for Beginners”. Severus smiled and went on one knee in front of him.

            “Hello there, Harry.”

            “Severus!” Harry looked up from his book and smiled at the sight of him, but didn’t immediately give him a welcome peck on the cheek because of the studying he had to do.

            “I don’t know if I will ever get use to you not calling me Master,” Severus lamented, feeling a little down hearing Harry calling him by name.

            “You said yourself you’re no longer my Master. I’m just agreeing to your wishes,” Harry replied. Severus couldn’t help feeling impressed over Harry’s progress. Back then, he was a tiny, insecure little kid who could only utter one syllable at a time and had to rely heavily on body languages and facial expression. Now Harry has gotten much more articulate since the last time they spoke. It felt almost like yesterday Harry was the silent little child whose smile spoke a thousand words.

            “I know. It is just…odd.”

            “You looking for Grandpa Albus?” Harry asked, going back to his book.

            “Not really,” Severus looked around at first. “Well, actually, I do have something to discuss with him, but it can wait a while longer. I was hoping to find you as well though. Where is Albus anyway?”

            “He’s at the Ministry. Meeting as usual,” Harry replied, not looking up at him, pretending to be serious just to tease him.

            “Really?” Severus grinned and knelt next to him. “And what about you?”

            Harry gave him a sideways seductive glance and replied briefly, “I’m busy with homework.”

            “And if I told you not to be?”

            Harry knew where this was leading to, but he wanted to tease him just a little bit more. He suddenly leaned over to lick his nose before going back to the book as if it never happened, “You don't own me anymore. You’ll have to bear with my…” he had to pronounce his next word a little slowly because it was a big word, “insubordination.”

            “Does that mean I can turn you over my knee and spank you?” Severus grinned deviously.

            “I’m not a little kid,” Harry pouted.

            “It would not be that way, pet.”

            Harry blushed at that pet name. He hadn’t heard that in a long time ever since he was under Albus’ custody and under Severus’ courtship, and in truth, he had secretly been aching for a little ‘loving’. The daily routines of going to morning classes with the private tutor and coming in the afternoons working as his Grandpa Albus’ personal office assistant was taking quite a toll on his neglected hormones, and he hadn’t had a decent fuck in months. He lowered his head until his book hid his face and whispered ever so softly.

            “Do what you want with me, ‘Master’. I’m your ‘slave’ today.”

            “Everything, love,” Severus whispered back huskily in that sexy tone Harry loved so much. “Everything.”

            Harry continued to hide his blushing smile behind the book, waiting to see what Severus would do next. Severus reached over with his pale index finger and pushed the book slightly.

            “Come on, love. Let me see that pretty face of yours. I miss it so much.”

            Harry obeyed, his eyes meeting Severus’ dark orbs that spelt passion and unadulterated lust.

            “We can’t do it here. Grandpa Albus might come in and catch us like this…”

            “Then we shall take it to your old room now, shan’t we?”

            “Horny toad,” Harry grinned, saying the word he learnt from Draco whenever they were together chatting about their sex life in private (before Ron and Hermione were in the picture, that is). Severus raised a brow at that comment and pulled Harry into the room where Harry used to stay when he was still a slave. The bed was still there, but now the wardrobe was gone and in its place was a study table where Harry could do his homework given by his private tutor and also a small fireplace which was connected to Harry’s bedroom at Albus’ home. Severus whispered a locking and silencing charm before pushing the boy against the door, grinning devilishly.

            “You horny toad,” Harry repeated again, blushing a crimson red.

            “A horny toad would do this to you now, would he?” Severus said before kissing him fully on the lips.

            Harry was taken by surprise but slowly eases in to the kiss. Severus let his hands roam Harry’s body from his nipples to the butt and then to his groin. He wanted to be anywhere and everywhere on Harry all at once. Oh, how he missed the feeling of his little lover’s perfectly smooth physique on his hands. Harry’s breathing, on the other hand, was starting to get erratic. It’s been so long since he was touched this way. Many nights he had to imagine Severus’ touches and caresses and longed for his warm arms to wrap around him while he slumbered. Now it was here for the taking, and there was no way he wanted to let it slip. As he enjoyed the familiar feeling of his beloved’s hands, Severus left Harry’s lips and ran his tongue down his jaw and to his neck.

            “Mmh…Master…” Harry shivered in delight at the wet touch of his tongue.

            Severus ran his hands up under the shirt, then lifted it out of the confines of his pants to take it off. Harry allowed Severus to do anything he wanted on him. He was being his slave just for him, and he loved the feeling of being needed again. Severus knelt down, undoing his pants and pulling them down. Slowly he leaned in and licked down his navel, making the boy tremble as he felt his cock throbbing and soaring at Severus’ face.

            “Turn around,” Severus ordered, leaning back.

            Harry whined at the loss of contact but did as he was told. Putting his hands on either side of the boy’s hips, he leaned forward and licked his spine from the top down. Harry moaned at the wet and cold feeling, trembling with ecstasy.

            “M…Master…Don’t tease…”

            “I can do what I want to. I’m your Master tonight, remember?” Severus grinned as he licked further down, coming close to the boy’s butt cheeks.

            Harry’s eyes squeezed real tight as he tried not to come from Severus’ teasing. His cock was already begging for release, and it was evidently so when Severus stole a look at it.

            “Do you need a ring?” Severus asked, opening him up and blowing lightly on the puckered entrance.

            Harry shook his head. He didn’t really like toys when he was still in the business. In fact, it was his least favourite method during training sessions.

            “Then don’t come, or I will punish you,” Severus warned, leaning down and licking over the pucker.

            Harry whined and bit his lower lip, trying hard to obey. He tried to think of something disgusting to keep himself at bay while moaning at the feeling of Severus’ tongue on his ass, but he knew it was not enough when all his senses were focused more on responding to the bodily pleasure than the mind’s rationale. Severus could see he was trying hard and wanted to help him. He encircled his hand on Harry’s cock and waited for the right moment before pulling at it sharply to stop Harry from coming.

            “Oww!” Harry winced in pain. “What are you doing?”

            “Keeping you from coming, love. You refused a ring, but you are not going to come unless I say so.”

            “But…But…” Harry whimpered, trying to fight back his tears of disappointment at the sudden loss of rush in his little boyhood. Severus noticed the look on his face.

            “But what, Harry? Am I hurting you?”

            Harry couldn’t help but wanting to ask the question he had been aching to ask ever since Severus declared his intention to court him. He hid his face in his hands and whispered, “Will…Will I always be…a sex slave to you…?”

            “What? No, no, Harry,” Severus, taken aback by such statement, let go and turned him around. “You are the love of my life, pet. I never think of you any less than that. You know that.”

            “After all I’ve done…” Harry whispered, his face still hidden behind his hands, “After all I’ve been through…Sometimes I don’t feel…worthy of your love, Severus. Sometimes I just don’t understand…why are you trying so hard? Why are you doing so much for me when I ask for so little?”

            “Shh, shh, Harry. Come here,” Severus comforted and pulled him into a hug. “You know why I’m doing all this for you. You already know how I feel for you. You were never anything less. You mean everything to me, and I am willing to let you have everything you desire, whether you know you want it or not. I love you, Harry. You know that, right?”

            Harry fell into Severus’ embrace, but kept his hands on his face. He wasn’t crying or anything, but he felt like it right now. He felt so embarrassed that he doubted his beloved’s sincerity for a moment there.

            “I’m sorry if I hurt you, Harry. I didn’t mean to treat you like that; my own arousal makes me do stupid things.”

            “I’m sorry too,” Harry shook his head. “I’m thinking stupid things as well…”

            “Would you like me to leave? So you don’t feel this way?”

            “No! Don’t go!” Harry grabbed Severus by the sleeves almost immediately, “No, Severus, give me your love. I want your love. I want everything. Please…Don’t leave me…”

            “Shh, it’s OK, Harry love,” Severus hushed as he kissed his forehead. “Lie down on the bed. I’ll make all your doubts go away.”

            Harry did so, his hands still gripping on Severus’ sleeves, worried that if he let go, he would lose Severus forever.

            “Come whenever you need to, pet. Don’t hold back. You have my permission.”

            With that, he knelt on the bed and swallowed the boy’s member whole, running his hands up and down Harry’s thighs to comfort him. Harry let out a moan as he felt Severus’ mouth engulfing him, the rush in his cock returning to him again. Severus bobbed up and down on the appendage, his hands squeezing about his thighs, then traveling up again. Harry soon felt the familiar tightening.

            “I’m…I’m going to come…”

            Severus nodded and sucked him hard, wanting to taste him. He hummed as he went along, the vibration of his voice doing the boy in. Harry let out a loud cry as he let out his load into Severus’ mouth, in which Severus swallowed it down and suckled him a little more before leaning up, licking his lips. Harry panted and trembled a little as his tremors subsided. It has been so long since he felt this way.

            “I…I love you, Severus…” Harry breathed as his body finally relaxed.

            “I love you too,” Severus replied and kissed him slowly, letting Harry taste himself.

            Harry moaned in the kiss as he could taste his own salty essence, making him aroused again. Severus pulled back and looked down at him in satisfaction.

            “So beautiful,” he murmured as he reached for his wand from his outer robe that he had discarded on a careless heap on the floor. Whispering a spell, he coated the insides of Harry’s opening with a slimy-type substance. Slowly he pushed a finger in. The boy gasped as Severus’ finger entered him. Unable to control himself, he thrust his hips slowly to get it deeper into him, while Severus leaned down to kiss his hip bone as the slick digit moved slowly in and out of him.

            “M…More…More, Severus…”

            “Shh,” Severus said against his hips. “I want you to remember every moment.”

            “Mmmh…” Harry closed his eyes as he enjoyed Severus’ touch on and in him. He was right. It’s been a long time. He deserved to take it slow, to let both of them remember this moment.

            Severus slowly pushed two in as he started stroking Harry again. It was quite hard on Severus to keep his control and hold back his urges to ravage the boy there and then for he was as hard as steel, but he would let Harry enjoy it before he slated his lust.

            Harry could not take this slow pleasurable torture any longer. He reached over to tease Severus’ shaft and begged, “Please…Enter me…”

            Severus bit lip to stifle the moan that about escape. He reached down and took Harry’s hand off.

            “But I want your first time after the monster to be nice and enjoyable. I want your body to be rid of his scent and covered in mine.”

            “Mmmh…I know but…It’s too good…I…I think I'm going to cum again…” Harry moaned, then a second later felt a little bit stupid after saying that, because he sounded like a girl would when being pummeled into pleasurable completion by a man.

           “Like I said, love, come whenever you need to. Come again for me,” Severus smirked as he slipped another finger in, working to make Harry stretched. “I assure you that will not be the last time.”

            Harry bit his lip as he felt the extra digit slipping in. He tried to hold back as long as he could while Severus, after pulling his fingers out, put what little lube there was on his finger onto his cock. Lifting Harry’s legs and hips up, he pushed slowly through that ring of muscle. Harry let out a strangled cry of pleasure as Severus’ fingers were finally replaced with his cock. He was done for yet again as he came all over his stomach, clenching tightly around Severus’ member as he lost control. Severus barely held back at the tight muscles squeezing around him, almost about to let loose his load that was throbbing painfully in his cock. His cheeks were totally flushed as he panted, trying to quell his erection back to a tolerable numbness.

            “I’m…sorry…” Harry panted and covered his face in embarrassment.

            “Told you that would not be the last time you’ll come,” Severus grinned. “Although you really are like a woman, coming more than once like this.”

            “You horny toad,” Harry pouted as he peeked through the gaps of his fingers.

            “I wouldn’t say that to the man that have his cock inside you. He may take it out.”

            Harry whined in protest at that statement.

            “Then be a good boy, alright?”

            At Harry’s nod, Severus started to move slowly. Harry’s breath labored as Severus started moving in him. Oh, how he missed that feeling of fullness in him! Severus moved over him, trying to look for the sweet spot and thrusting harder than he intended but the familiar warmth around his cock was making him feel dizzy. He had to go deeper and faster. He had to keep on submerging himself into the blissful heat until he cannot tell whether it was his own warmth or the child’s. He wanted to go closer until the distance between them no longer existed. He wanted to be one with his little beloved and never be torn apart ever again. He wanted anything and everything that had to do with his beautiful little Harry and he would go to the ends of the earth to achieve it.

            Harry, on the other hand, let out cry after cry of ecstasy, the familiar strong pounding sending chills down his spine. He could feel Severus’ cock almost reaching that spot but not quite.

            “D…Deeper…Severus…”

            Severus, complying to his beloved’s wishes, pushed Harry's legs to the sides as he started pounding into him. Harry’s eyes saw stars as his sweet spot was finally ravished, hit hard like being rammed by a freight train. He screamed in ecstatic approval as his cock began to soar and throb again, this time the tightening feeling in the pit of his stomach coming faster and in tenfold.

            “Harry, I am not going to last much longer,” Severus moaned, leaning over him and pulling Harry to his lips. Harry kissed him briefly before tearing off.

            “M…Me too…I think…I’m going to cum again…”

            “Yes, Harry…So close…”

            Severus thrust once, then twice, and soon he came inside him in torrents. He had his hand stroking the boy’s length aligned with his thrusts and Harry screamed as he came again as well from the double assault, staining both of them with his seed. Severus winced at the ring of muscles clenching around him, milking him for all its worth. He panted, leaning over him as he rode out his tremors. Harry panted as well, slowly succumbing to fatigue. This was the first time after so long in the business since he had come so many times. The last time he had let off so much loads was when one of his previous Masters were doing their usual gangbang on him during the celebration of New Year’s Day and it wasn’t exactly the best orgasm he had since it was forced out of him. But this was much better, and he actually enjoyed it.

            Severus pulled out slowly, making the boy wince a little, and moved to the side. Harry grabbed his wrist instinctively despite his drained body.

            “Don’t go…”

            “I will be right here,” Severus assured him, stroking his ebony locks.

            Harry sighed quietly in relief as he soon fell asleep beside Severus. Out of force of habit, he sucked his thumb as he slept. Severus waited for a bit before pulling the sheets over them. He continued to watch him, studying every inch of the boy’s features and remembering why he loved them so much. Everything on him, from the first strand of his hair to the last toenail was all so perfect and beautiful to him. He couldn’t get enough of him, but he knew he had to end this musing before they were caught like this. After all, he did say in front of Albus as a witness that he was courting him, and according to the age-old tradition of the men in his family, courting meant nowhere further than holding hands and kisses.

            Severus watched Harry for a little longer before he had to leave. Using his wand to clean themselves and putting his manhood back into his pants, he donned his outer robes and stepped quietly out of the room, only to find Albus standing there grinning knowingly at him.

            “Good…Good evening, Albus,” Severus tried to regain composure. Albus happily ignored the slight tint of red on the cheeks Severus desperately tried to hide.

            “You are here to see me, I presume?”

            “Well, yes. It’s about Draco Malfoy.”

            “Have a seat, and we’ll talk it over tea and biscuits, shall we?”


	44. Chapter 44

            Draco woke up feeling sick again, his stomach had yet to settle down and it was not even three months into his pregnancy. He sighed and got up and washed for the day. He saw that it was already 10 in the morning and he had practically missed the first two classes of the day, but he couldn’t care less. Besides, there was a note left on his bedside table from his Uncle Sev saying that he had taken care of things with the Headmaster and that he was excused from classes if he didn’t feel up and about for it. He was definitely going to take advantage of that privilege. The last thing he wanted was to end up puking his guts out all over the classroom floor every 5 minutes.

            He wondered how Remus was doing. Was he alright? Had his Father done something to him? Or worse…was he even still alive? He wanted to go back and get him but he knew he had to protect his baby. He dressed and went to the library to read something to kill time before coming to the Great Hall to lunch. Surprising everyone at the Gryffindor table, Draco came and sat between Ron and Hermione, and not his own house, for they more or less shunned him now. Everyone in all houses whispered incredulously to each other about Draco’s sudden change of behavior, but so far, only Ron and Hermione didn’t seem to be bothered about it.

            “How’re you doing now? Everything alright?” Hermione asked in concern. So far, among the students, only the Old Married Couple knew of his ‘dirty little secret’, and he’d like to keep it that way.

            “You didn’t get rid of the baby, did you?” Ron asked worriedly.

            “Keep that to yourself, weasel!” Draco hushed, his face flushed and his eyes glaring venomously at the redhead. He then shook his head and replied to Hermione, “I still feel sick and I am worried about Remus.”

            “Hey, I only meant it out of concern,” Ron held up his hands in surrender. “It was Mione who’s so intent to tell you to get rid of it…”

            “Yes, Ron. Make me the devil of this outfit,” Hermione rolled her eyes sarcastically and patted Draco’s shoulder. “Try to not think too much about it. It’s bad for the baby to have so much stress.”

            “But what if…” Draco bit his lip, hesitant to speak his mind for a moment before continuing, “What if Father had done something to him? What’ll I do then?”

            “I’m sure Prof. Snape would be able to come up with something,” Ron popped a piece of custard pie into his mouth. He tried offering one to Draco but the blonde declined. He took a sip of hot chocolate to wash down the pie before continuing, “The most important thing right now is you n your baby’s health…or ‘babies’ if Mione’s right about you having multiples.”

            “Please do _not_ remind me,” Draco groaned as he sat his head on the table, his lost appetite even more lost with that horrifying fact.

            “Sorry to burst your bubble, but there is something you need to know,” Hermione noted as she helped herself to some mash potatoes.

            “If it has anything to do with the term ‘Kicking a dog when it’s down’, I’ve got it hands down, since I’ve done it one time,” Draco grumbled sarcastically.

            “No, that’s not what I want to tell you,” Hermione sighed. “It’s regarding the babies you’re carrying. Let’s meet up at Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom later after lunch.”

            Thus, after lunch (which Draco didn’t eat much except a piece of toast and some pumpkin juice), the trio made their way quickly to the haunted bathroom. They greeted Moaning Myrtle and Hermione politely told the ghost girl to leave (promising her that she would tell Harry to bring her favourite dandelions freshly plucked for her weekly tribute) before casting a Silencing Charm all over the area.

            “So? What is it that is so hush-hush that we need to speak here?” Draco folded his arms across his chest.

            “Would you rather I told you in front of everyone at the Great Hall?” Hermione raised a brow.

            “Don’t tempt me, Mud…” the blonde stopped short of what he wanted to call her with a stern gaze from Ron, “I mean, Granger. I’m not in a good mood right now.”

            “Do you have to tell him now in his stressed condition?” Ron asked his fiancé warily.

            “Better now than never,” Hermione noted dourly.

            “Hmm? What is it now?” Draco demanded. “Am I going to have a dozen of them babies or something?”

            “No, that’s anatomically impossible,” Hermione rolled her eyes in defeat. “It’s regarding the nature of your pregnancy. According to the ancient laws, it’s forbidden for a werewolf to breed with humans. Werewolves are cursed beings that are considered something that shouldn’t have existed at all, but thanks to the Protection Act for Magical Beings, they were spared from being entirely eliminated. Rather than going on a wolf hunt to strike them out of existence, they decided that they should just die out naturally and give in to extinction, thus the strict rule of breeding with humans. In fact, most people who are discovered to be werewolves are quickly captured and sterilized before releasing them out.”

            “We think that possibly the slave business didn’t think it would matter to sterilize Remus since he’s only half a werewolf,” Ron continued, “but now that you’re pregnant with his kids, the Ministry is definitely going to have a field day with your case.”

            “Oh great, now they are going to sterilize him…” Draco groaned, then it hit him. “Wait. What exactly does sterilizing do?

            “Well, I’m not sure how you do it in the wizarding world,” Hermione went straight to Human-encyclopedia mode, “but in the Muggle world, when someone doesn’t want a pet to go around breeding all over the plc, or when someone decided they don’t want children or have had enough, they go to a doctor and they perform surgeries to severe and block the passageway that produces the sperm or the eggs. That way no matter how many times they do it, they won’t get pregnant or impregnate anybody.”

            “NO~!!!” Draco exclaimed in horror. “No, no, no! They…They can’t do that!!!”

            “Hey, easy, Draco,” Ron put his hands on his shoulders to calm him down.

            “I haven’t even told you the worst part,” Hermione continued in a guilty, awkward tone. “I won’t sugar-coat it for you but if the Ministry knew your condition and the real father, they might…make you abort the cubs either way, no matter how much you want to keep them.”

            “I don’t freaking care about the pregnancy or having more children or not, or the sterilizing,” Draco sobbed, putting his arms around his middle, “but they can sure go fuck themselves before I will let them abort my baby!”

            “I know, it wouldn’t be fair for you either. But this is something you have to know,” Hermione said as she took Draco in her arms to calm him. “I’m sorry but I had to tell you. It’s best if you’re prepared.”

            “I told you, Mione, you shouldn’t tell him…” Ron started but was stopped by Hermione’s dagger-like gaze.

            “Shut it, Ron. I feel bad as it is.”

            “I have to get away, I have to do something,” Draco muttered in an almost incoherent crazed tone, mostly to himself. “I have to get Remus and run.”

            “Now don’t be stupid,” Hermione reprimanded him, trying to knock him back to his senses. “Didn’t Prof. Snape promise you he’ll do something about Remus?”

            “But how? Buy him?” Draco retaliated, his silver orbs going glassy, brimming with tears. “Father has more money than Uncle Sev, and plus he wouldn’t give him to Uncle Sev, period! I _know_ him, Granger! He’s not going to just agree happily if Uncle Sev marches right to the door asking for ownership of Remus! He’s my Father, and I _know_ him _too well_!”

            “I dunno,” Ron scratched his chin nervously, feeling a little awkward to see the usual calm and collected Draco Malfoy screaming his head off. “As much as I hate to admit it, Prof. Snape _is_ a smart git. He’ll think of something. Right now, your baby is important. Do you want to lose you and Remus’ lovechild exerting yourself like this?”

            “Well, _excuse me_ for not having a one-track mind like you, Weasel!!” Draco snapped at the redhead, forcing him to back away. Ron frowned.

            “We know that you’re upset, Draco. You think this is not affecting us as well? You’re our friend. Well, maybe not our _best_ friend, but you’re our friend nonetheless, and you’re up the duff and not exactly in tip-top shape. You think we’re not upset as well seeing you like this? Bloody hell, I’m feeling like a part of me is just tearing apart and falling into pieces just thinking of you being so uptight like this and risking your pregnancy _and_ your health! You think we actually like seeing you like this??”

            “ _You’re_ not the one pregnant!! You’re not the one knocked up and having to worry every second of your life thinking that your lover is at the mercy of your father who could just eliminate him with a snap of a finger!! How would you _fucking_ understand how _I_ feel?!”

            “Stop it, Ron! You are not helping!” Hermione pushed Ron aside, trying to hold Draco back from lashing out at him. She wrapped her arms around Draco tight and urged, “Calm down. For the sake of your cubs, you have to stop being such a nervous wreck and _calm down_!!”

            Draco struggled for a moment until he couldn’t hold back the aching feeling in his heart any longer. He took a breath and then outright sobbed his guts out, the tears falling freely down his fair skin. His sobs grew louder and louder to the point where he was practically wailing in agony, letting out everything that was pent up within him. He cried and cried until he could no longer stand properly. He fell onto his knees and continued to whimper, with Hermione hugging him closer like a mother would to a child throwing a tantrum.

            “Shh, shh, shh…It’s OK, Draco. Everything will work out fine. Just don’t think about it. You’ve got us and you’ve got Harry and Prof. Snape. Let us help you worry about it, alright?”

            While Draco was still reduced to a sobbing, teary mess, Hermione gave Ron a knowing look. Ron nodded and knelt in front of the blonde, whispering a Sleeping Spell into Draco’s ear. It sounded almost like a lullaby and soon, Draco sagged against Hermione as the spell took effect, the last of his tears streaking down his face. The Old Married Couple heaved a sigh of relief.

            “Thank Merlin that’s over,” Ron sighed in relief as the atmosphere finally gone down to a comfortable silence. “Never thought I’d see the day Draco Malfoy would act like an insecure child and crying his head off.”

            “It’s just the mood-swings talking,” Hermione said. “For his condition, it’s practically normal. Just carry him to our house. He can sleep on your bed for a while.”

            “Right,” Ron nodded as he picked Draco up and off Hermione’s arms and carried him piggy back all the way to the Gryffindor house, ignoring the surprised looks and stares of passers-by. Hermione spoke the password and they both entered the boys’ dorm before Ron dropped him carefully onto his bed and pulled the covers over him.

            Both of them wished they were right about putting their faith and trust on Prof. Snape.

\--:--

            Severus knocked on the large oak door and sighed as he waited for an answer. As much as he hated to do this, Draco needed somewhere away from school and his old home, especially when he is in this condition. He reflected on his discussion with Albus Dumbledore (after that secret romp with Harry, that is) on how to accommodate his godson’s condition…

* * *

 

 _“This_ is _quite a predicament we’re having here,” Albus rubbed his chin thoughtfully after Severus finished his tale._

_“Yes, well, the child had the unfortunate luck of inheriting a bit of his father’s carelessness, I suppose,” Severus sighed regretfully. “Whenever that man had hormones in his mind, everything else goes out the window.”_

_“Well, I must be honest with you, Severus. Normally in this situation, students who are caught pregnant during school years are usually immediately expelled. If not, the lightest punishment they might get would probably be suspension until they have done carrying the child to term, and even that, they had to go through many procedures of reapplication and reevaluation by the school board before even allowed to continue their studies where they left off.”_

_“I’m very well aware of that. And that is exactly what I truly wish to avoid. I usually do not play favourites even among my own students, but Draco has been through enough having to face disowning by his own family and also is under the threat of danger by the Ministry for carrying a forbidden child. To let him know that he is being expelled at the prime of his youth is not something I would like to relay, especially in his condition right now.”_

_“True,” Albus nodded in agreement. “To ask him to abort the child he is carrying is also risky because there is a high chance it might take a toll on his body more than it would if he carried the child to term.”_

_Severus massaged his temples, trying to relieve a phantom headache._ Why, oh, why does everything bizarre and out of the norm always have to revolve around my side of the family? _Severus thought helplessly._

_“Well, I can always arrange for a private tutor to tutor him so that he can catch up with his fellow peers, and then if he is lucky, he might make it to attend exams with them after he recovers from birth,” Albus replied. “I know a respectable lady who has the best teaching skills available and practice the term ‘Mum’s the word’ on Draco’s condition. But you must convince at least one of young Malfoy’s parents to write and sign a letter stating why Draco can no longer go to school and requires a private tutor for the time being.”_

_“I can always write the letter myself and ask the mother to sign it,” Severus offered. “She may not be the best mother in the whole world, but I know what right buttons to push to get her to do things for me. But, if you don’t mind me asking, who are you going to assign as Draco’s private tutor?”_

_“You will know in due time,” Albus smiled in his own mysterious twinkling way that made Severus seriously doubt it was anyone normal. “Oh, before I forget, you must try to find another suitable quarter for young Malfoy to live in. Your place definitely would not do.”_

_“I agree. There is no doubt that sooner or later, the cat will be out of the bag. Draco and his child’s life might be in jeopardy if the Ministry gets a hold of them.”_

_“Have you any thoughts of who you might assign Draco to?”_

_Severus shook his head, “My biological extended families have either all passed on or lost touch, and none of Draco’s extended families are trustworthy enough.”_

_“Have you considered someone who would at least be the last place the Ministry would ever consider looking?” Albus tried to hint on him, although it’s evident in the old man’s eyes who his best candidate was._

_“Well, not really, but…” Severus read between the lines of Albus’ question and was quite startled. “Oh no, not him! Albus, you cannot possibly suggest…”_

_“Do you even have a choice in that matter?”_

_Severus hated it when the old geezer was right._

* * *

            Sirius was chugging down his last bottle of burgundy when he heard the infernal knock on his door. He grumbled and stomped towards the front door before opening it with stale alcohol in his breath.

            “I said I don’t want any paper subscription!”

            “Classy as ever, Black.” Severus commented, leaning back from the stench.

            “Oh, it’s you, Snivellus,” Sirius’ angry face immediately drooped into a bored look and leaned against the door frame. “Whaddaya want?”

            “To talk to you, of course,” Severus replied dourly, his black orbs travelling up and down Sirius’ unsightly demeanour. “But obviously that is too much to ask from you.”

            “Why would I want to talk to a lowlife like you?”

            “It is about your nephew Draco. He needs somewhere to stay.”

            “Hasn’t he got his own freakin’ home to stay?” Sirius’ tone sounded impatient, as if he was still not willing to let Severus in the house to carry on with the conversation properly. “What’s it got to do with me?”

            “Well, as you can tell from my presence here—as much as I loathe it—I am here to ask of your favour to let him bunk in, so to speak.”

            “Why should I let him stay in _my_ home?”

            “There has been…a problem.”

            “What problem?” Sirius asked uncaringly as he emptied his bottle of burgundy.

            “He is with child.”

            That blatant statement sobered him up a little as his widened for a while before staring at Severus in disbelief.

            “By his sex slave, as a matter of fact,” Severus finished his sentence.

            Without warning, Sirius suddenly grabbed Severus by the collar and dragged him in the house before slamming the door. Severus straightened his collar, slightly amused that he had finally got the drunkard’s attention and finally got invited, in a manner of speaking, into the house rather than having to carry on with this embarrassing conversation outside for everyone to hear. Sirius stomped towards the Potions Master and glared darkly at him.

            “You better not be shitting me, or I swear…”

            “Do you think I would jest about such thing?” Severus raised a brow.

            As much as he hated to admit it, Sirius knew much about Severus not to joke about such things. He inched away from Severus and continued to take in mouthfuls of burgundy, muttering, “Fair enough. Well, how did Drake get knocked up by that slave anyhow?”

            “He stole a potion from me and,” Severus rolled his eyes at this, “despite the fact that I have always told him to know what he is using, he used a pregnancy potion because he thought it was lubricant oil or something.”

            “Hah!” Sirius guffawed. “I always knew Drake was a dumb blonde like his mother. So what’s it gotta do with me? It’s a slave’s child. Can’t you help him whip up an abortion potion or something?”

            “That is it. Draco refused it. He wants to keep the child. I even dueled against Lucius to have him in my custody rather than letting that cold-blooded son of a bitch do things against the boy’s will.”

            “Of all the things he had to inherit, he had to inherit _your_ touchy-feely attitude,” Sirius sneered in disgust. “Give him an Imperius Curse or something. Make him drink the damn potion. How dumb can he be, trying to keep a slave’s child? How dumb can _you_ be, allowing him to carry on with this charade?”

            “I am not going to kill my godson’s child, Black. You may be heartless enough to sell your mother to the business, as I have no doubt you would, but I am not.”

            “You didn’t tell me exactly why he needs to stay at my place when his house would suffice.”

            “For starters, Lucius will not have him there. If he sets one foot into that house, Lucius would no doubt tie him up to a stake or something and force-feed him with abortion potion.”

            “Not good enough. Unless you tell me that Drake has gotten knocked up by a werewolf or something, I won’t help.”

            “Half-wolf, to be exact.”

            Sirius’ eyes widened until it looked like it was going to fall out of its sockets. He had meant that last statement as a joke, but he didn’t think he had hit the jackpot.

            “You mean to tell me that sex slave he got for his birthday that day is a half-breed??”

            “Yes,” Severus replied in a as-a-matter-of-fact way.

            “Lucius should be hanged for this!” Sirius exclaimed, flailing his arms in shock. “He should’ve sterilized the half-breed as soon as he got him! What was that idiot thinking?! Now look what he’s done to the kid?!”

            “Apparently without thinking, he got his kid pregnant.”

            “And lemme guess,” Sirius finally got the picture. “You want me to hide Drake here because of his forbidden pregnancy.”

            “Precisely.”

            “Can’t you let him stay in your place? Or in the school?” Sirius raised a brow.

            “No,” Severus shook his head. “Those will be the first place they’d look for him, since I’m the closest relative he’s got. You have never made much of lasting impression on anyone other than those closest to you either by blood or by status, much less with the Ministry, so you are the last on their list, right after the boogey monster.”

            “I dunno whether that’s a compliment or not,” Sirius glared at Severus skeptically before looking away. “Still, you won’t get help from me. I never get involved with anything that has no concern over me.”

            “Well then,” Severus smirked, half-expecting Sirius to be a tough cookie to crack. “What about I tell Cornelius that his daughter, Emily’s virginity was taken but none other than Sirius Black?”

            Sirius spun round and narrowed his eyes in fury, “You wouldn’t dare!”

            “Oh, and also how her child may not be her husband’s.”

            “It was just a one night stand!” Sirius bellowed. “She was the slut in the first place, barging into that bar dressed in that scantily-clad clothes on the night before her supposed wedding when she was supposed to be at her own bachelorette party! She was the one who offered herself to us, saying that she wanted to make up for her husband not inviting us to his bachelor party! She was fucked by everyone else as well during that time! You have no proof!”

            While Sirius was screaming his head off in denial, Severus had produced a sheet of papyrus showing a family tree. Sirius recognized that style of drawing too well, as he also had one just like that in his study, only his was bigger. It was created out of the lineage potion and if made correctly, produces a 100 percent accurate result of the family tree you are researching on. Knowing Severus’ expertise as a Potions Master, that sheet of papyrus Severus was holding definitely held the key to Sirius’ downfall as he saw Cornelius’ daughter, Emily’s name on it, with a child’s name that was linked to a sole branch that stuck out between Emily and her husband with his full name written all over it.

            “Hmm, how did a fair girl like her and blonde boy get a dark-haired child, I wonder…” Severus pretended to ponder innocently, all the while his black orbs gazed occasionally in amusement at Sirius’ reaction.

            “You son of a bitch!!!” Sirius yelled as he threw his empty bottle at Severus, which only nicked him by the cheek slightly before smashing against the wall behind him. Severus could tell Sirius was trying to fight the urge to punch his lights out lest he did something stupid to offend the person who had his fate literally held in his hands.

            “Do you agree?”

            Sirius breathed heavily in anger before taking a deep breath and yelled, “Alright! Fine! I’ll take that dumb blonde of a nephew in, if that’s what you want! Happy now?!”

            “Most certainly,” Severus replied, pocketing the papyrus. “Your secret’s safe with me, don’t worry.”

            “I’ve agreed to your terms, so you bloody well keep to yours! Bring him whenever you want, the later the better!” Sirius growled and used his wand to open the door. “Now get out of my house before I change my mind!”

            “Very well, although I doubt you would anytime soon,” Severus replied and left with a satisfied smug. He barely even registered the door slammed rudely behind his wake as he made his way behind the house to get his broom from one of Sirius’ hired help and flew off towards the direction of Hogwarts.

            Sirius waited until he could no longer feel Severus’ presence in the vicinity of his house before massaging his temple. All that forced sobering up made his head hurt.

            “Gods, I need another burgundy…” Sirius’ voice trailed away as he stomped off to the wine cellar.


	45. Chapter 45

            While Severus was on his way back to Hogwarts, Harry was with Draco in his room at Severus’ dorm right at that moment, resting his head on Draco’s slight bulge, trying to hear any movement. Draco had come clean with Harry and told him the news about his pregnancy and surprisingly, rather than getting a shocked or horrified look from the younger boy, he was met with a confused gaze. Apparently despite the fact that he was far more ‘educated’ in the art of sex and whatnot, he had no understanding whatsoever with the basic sex ed and the stuff about the birds and the bees. Draco had to explain it to the boy very carefully so as not to overload his brain with too much facts, and also told him about the ability to conceive for men in the wizarding world that were far different—almost impossible—for men in the Muggle world. After everything sunk in, the boy beamed happily and congratulated him with glee. At least it was a much better reaction than what his parents and the Old Married Couple gave him.

            “Harry, I have not felt anything yet,” Draco chuckled. “I don’t think the baby will move just yet. I’m barely even 3 months.”

            “Who knows?” Harry grinned, looking up at him in amusement. “They might be moving and you just don’t notice.”

            “Quit saying ‘they’. I would like to hold on to the last tiny little piece of hope that it is only one.”

            “Mione is never wrong, you know.”

            “Thanks, but not helping,” Draco groaned.

            “Don’t worry, little cubs,” Harry talked to Draco’s belly as if they could hear him. “Your Uncle Severus will bring your Daddy to see you in no time.”

            “If he is not already dead,” Draco sighed worriedly. “Father probably has already killed him.”

            “Draco, you must have faith in Severus. He knows what to do.”

            “I will try, Harry. I will try.”

            Harry continued laying his head against Draco’s belly, still hoping to hear any sort of movement the baby—or babies—might have. He looked up when the door opened a few moments later revealing Severus, stepping into the room and putting his broom aside.

            “Severus!” Harry beamed.

            “Hello, Harry, Draco,” Severus greeted the boys. “Are you alright today?”

            “A little morning sickness,” Draco admitted, “but so far, so good.”

            “I made him eat sour drops all day,” Harry announced. “Mione said it’s good for morning sickness.”

            “I think now I want to throw _them_ up instead,” Draco nodded, making Harry laugh out loud at that comment. Sometimes he felt as if Hermione was the ‘father’ of the child, clucking behind him like a mother hen trying to get him to go by the books and manuals to ensure a safe and healthy pregnancy on his part.

            “Well, you do need to eat healthy too,” Severus nodded. It seemed like at least his godson was well taken care of when he wasn’t around to watch out for him.

            “I know, Uncle Sev. I’m trying to, just so long as I don’t end up emptying myself in the toilet every 10 seconds.”

            “Where have you been, Severus?” Harry asked curiously.

            “Finding a home for Draco,” Severus replied as he removed his outer robes and hung it on the coat stand.

            “Home?” Draco asked. “Am I not supposed to live here with you?”

            “You know as well as I do that you are not exactly carrying a normal baby,” Severus noted. “Albus and I have decided that to keep you out of trouble with the Ministry, it is best if you stay somewhere that the Ministry would not suspect you living in and arrange you a private tutor to carry on teaching you at least until you carry the child to term. Hopefully after your birth and the usual one-month confinement period, you’ll be able to actually make it to the exams.”

            “I understand,” Draco nodded. He knew his godfather was right. There was no way he could stay in school after what happened to him. Sooner or later, the Ministry will hear wind of his condition and there would be hell to pay. “So…uh…who am I staying with then? Who will be my private tutor?”

            “Albus is arranging it as we speak. As for lodgings, I have assigned you with a cousin of your mother’s.”

            “Which one? Mother’s got plenty of cousins. Not Aunt Bella, I hope. She’s a total nutcase.”

            Severus hesitated for a second before replying, “Sirius Black.”

            Draco widened his eyes in shock and exclaimed, “Not him!”

            Harry looked back and forth between their conversations. He briefly remembered that name and the face of the name’s owner. Strikingly handsome with wild-looking hair and a permanent drunken glaze across his eyes, and the scene where Severus grabbed his hand when he tried to touch him surfaced in his memory on that fateful day at Draco’s birthday party where he first met Remus after so many months apart.

            “Draco, there is nothing that will happen to you,” Severus tried to assure his godson, but Draco wanted none of that.

            “Uncle Sev, that guy shags anything that moves. He’s just as bad as Father. Why him of all people?!”

            “Because I have things on him, things that I’ve promised him to keep just between us, and he will do as he was told.”

            Draco wanted to retaliate but Harry tugged his sleeve, pleading him with his jade-green eyes. The blonde stole another skeptical look at Severus before finally sighing and said, “Well, as long as you know what you’re doing. I promised Harry I’ll trust you and that’s what I’ll try to do right now.”

            “I do know,” Severus said confidently. "I will take you there first thing tomorrow after class, but right now, don’t you have homework to do?”

            “I don’t…” He was about to protest but he caught Severus’ look and understood. He grinned and replied, “Yeah, my Herbology essays don’t write themselves. Gotta go.”

            With that he left the room, winking at Harry before closing the door behind him. Severus chuckled after him and turned to his beloved.

            “And how have you been, Harry?”

            “I'm OK. My tutor said I can more or less catch up on the lesson. He said next year I might probably join in Hogwarts. I might be a bit older than my fellow first years, but I don’t mind, as long as I can go to school like Draco, Ron and Mione.”

            “Remember, that means you will also be in my class, and I warn you I will not go easy on you just because I have had you in bed,” Severus grinned.

            “I know that,” Harry pouted. “You don’t play favourites when it comes to work.”

            “And,” Severus came closer with a devious look strewn all over his face, “I will not give you passing grades, no matter how good you are to me in bed.”

            “Naughty horny toad,” Harry muttered as he picked up a soft toy nearby and blocked his face with it. That didn’t stop Severus from leaning down even closer towards the boy.

            “Your point?”

            Harry pouted again at the way Severus always sounded so sexy when he did that in his ear, making him putty almost all the time. He reached forward to capture Severus’ earlobe and sucked it erotically just the way Severus liked it before letting go and said in a challenging tone, “Then I’ll _make_ you give me a passing grade.”

            “Mmhmm,” Severus grinned. “And how exactly would you achieve that, _Mister_ Potter-Dumbledore?”

           “For starters…” Harry whispered as he reached down to stroke Severus’ bulge. Severus hissed silently at the feeling.

            “Really, that’s all? What about the main course?”

            “A real connoisseur must enjoy their starters first,” Harry wriggled his finger at his face, then unzipped Severus’ pants and pulled him out before stroking him nice and slow, his fingers moving independently and massaging every inch of the delectable man meat.

            “Oh yes, I should…” Severus moaned lowly. Leaning in, he kissed Harry, needing to taste those lovely lips. Harry moaned into the kiss while his fingers teased the tip of the cock occasionally when he continued his long, drawn out stroking. His other hand got busy massaging the sac, teasing it into a frenzy, moving in that skilled manner he had mastered from the training in the business. Severus maneuvered until he was leaning back against the bed post and said in a wonting tone, “I would love that mouth on me, Harry.”

            Harry grinned and leaned down to suck him, starting off by licking the tip and tracing his tongue along the cock before taking it all in, the head briefly brushing against the back of his throat. Severus breathed his approval and ran his hand through Harry’s hair, enjoying the feeling of Harry sucking and licking at the same time, humming in ecstasy with one hand on the older man’s hip and his other hand continuing to massage the balls. The words “Good boy”, “So good” and Harry’s name escaped the Potions Master’s lips as he moved his hips slowly, fucking Harry’s mouth. Taking advantage of his lack of gag reflex, Harry put his hands down to support his squatting position as he allowed Severus to fuck his mouth. Severus’ hips moved faster at that gesture but still he didn’t move too fast; he didn’t want to accidentally choke Harry, no matter how expert the boy was at deep-throat fellatio, while Harry hummed aligned with Severus’ thrust, sending the vibration through his cock just as he liked it. The familiar incoming tightening of the pit of his stomach made Severus pull back.

            “Enough, pet,” Severus smiled down at him. “I will come before time.”

            “Then I guess it’s time you have your main course,” Harry offered as he undressed. He deliberately removed his pants slowly to tease Severus before he lay on the bed, holding up his hips and spreading his legs seductively for Severus to see.

            “Mmm, but I can’t really figure out how to have my meals,” Severus rubbed his chin in a pretend thoughtful manner. “There are many ways to enjoy it; I’m afraid I might end up biting more than I could chew.”

            “Then you shall have to use your imagination, Severus. I’m all yours to dine.”

            “Well, for that, I most certainly will. On all fours, Harry.”

            Harry did as he was told. Severus quickly cast a lubricating and a stretching spell, since he had no lube with him. He stroke Harry’s opening and dipped his finger in, probing him until he found Harry’s prostate. The boy let out a high-pitched moan as his beloved hit the sweet spot, making him grip the bed sheets tight and pant erratically, his own little boyhood coming to life.

            “How does that feel, Harry?” Severus asked as he thrust the finger in and out at a fast pace.

            Harry moaned and groaned incoherently before managing to utter, “So…good…”

            Severus spread the cheeks apart, opening his entrance and pushed in slowly, feeling every inch of the glorious tightness, and when the boy moaned his approval loudly at the feeling of being entered, he whispered near his ear, “Stroke yourself, Harry, but do not come.”

            Harry obeyed, reaching down to stroke himself and going as slow as possible so that he wouldn’t come too quickly. Severus moved at a slow pace, feeling and enjoying everything. He reached down and stroke Harry’s back.

            “I have missed you, Harry. All this business with schoolwork and the students, you always either at home studying or busy attending to Albus’ needs, and then Draco’s issue…it’s driving my hormone wild.”

            “I missed you too…since the last time you took me, Severus…I missed you so much…”

            “I can’t wait till the courtship is over and I can be with you all the time,” Severus said as he quickened his pace.

            “I…Mmh…Y-Yes…!” Harry loved the quickened pace as he felt his spot being rammed harder, the familiar hot white flashes blasting in his mind’s eye. It took him a while before Harry managed to regain composure and asked, “H…How long…Mmh…should it usually last…?”

            “Until your 17th birthday when you’re officially of age, love,” Severus replied as he started to move even faster.

            “I…I wanna see you…Please…” Harry begged, reaching out and putting a hand around the older man’s neck.

            “But I love seeing your back arch for me while I thrust into you…”

            “I wanna see you…” Harry pleaded. “I wanna see your love on your face…Please…Please, Master…”

            Severus’ heart melted as the boy called him by the title he missed so much. He pulled out slowly and rested a hand on the boy’s hip.

            “Then turn over.”

            Harry eagerly did so, wrapping his arms around Severus’ neck. Now he could see every emotion, every feeling, every passionate love that emitted out of his beloved’s eye as they continued with their love-making. Severus leaned closer and reentered him with a sharp thrust, his pace not exactly harder or faster than before. Harry could feel him entering, but it didn’t felt as wild and passionate as before.

            “S…Something wrong, Severus?”

            “I am ready to come soon, but…” Severus spoke through gritted teeth. Harry knew exactly what his sentence was supposed to end.

            “I know how to slow it down…My Master…”

            So saying, he pulled Severus close to give him a slow and soft kiss, hoping that the older man would be in rhythm with him. Severus felt as if he was stuck between a rock and a hard place, but he wanted to enjoy the kiss so he forced his body to slow down. Harry kissed him nice and slow, engaging in a waltz tongue dance, and it worked wonderfully; Severus’ painful ache in his manhood dulled a little.

            “Do you miss me calling you ‘Master’?”

            “Yes, but you are not my slave anymore, unfortunately,” Severus admitted almost mournfully. He had wanted to set Harry free but didn’t see in the long term that Harry would no longer be his slave and that calling him ‘Master’ would end. He felt almost regretful that he had gone through all the trouble to get the payment for Harry’s freedom.

            “Don’t worry,” Harry said as he placed his hands on the older man’s sallow—with a tint of pink—cheeks. “I will still belong to you, no matter what. My heart and my soul are all in your possession. I love you so much, Severus. You rescued me from my nightmare. You saved my soul and loved me unconditionally. I’m forever yours.”

            “Oh, Harry,” Severus breathed as he put his head in Harry’s crook of the neck, his emotions threatening to break loose. He had hoped Harry’s new lease of life would give the boy a new profound way of expressing himself, but to hear such words spoken by such an innocent child was more than he had bargained for. It made all his efforts for him since the fateful day he was won over by the boy’s sparkling green eyes at the slave auction so worthwhile.

            “It’s OK, Severus,” Harry hugged him back, caressing his hair. He knew exactly what he felt and it was all he needed to know that his beloved Potions Master understood and appreciated what his heart truly felt. “Let it all out. It’s alright.”

            Severus shook his head, but his pace had slowed to a stop as he reigned in his emotions. There was no way he was going to break down, especially not in this moment of tender passion they have been waiting to complete. But he did allow himself to speak those three words in a choked voice.

            “I love you too, Harry.”

            Severus reached to capture the boy’s kiss once more, kissing him deeply, before picking him up and laid down on his back on the bed.

            “My back was hurting,” Severus said. Harry could see that there was still moisture in his eyes. As the boy wiped it away, Severus continued, “Now it is your turn to show me. Grind around me. Put your arms on either side of my head.”

            “With pleasure, Master,” Harry replied as he put his arms just as Severus asked and started moving up and down, trying to get Severus’ cock to aim for his sweet spot again.

            “Yes, Harry, so good…” Severus’ breathing labored as he started stroking Harry’s cock. He wanted desperately to come, wanted to come inside that sweet tight body, wanted to make it as his own over and over again. The double assault was making Harry slowly lose control. As his prostate was hit, Harry moved even faster and harder, moaning and panting erotically.

            “I’m…I’m going to…come…Master…!!”

            “Yes, Harry. Come for me. Draw my cum out.”

            With one hand, Severus stroke Harry’s cock faster and with the other he was pulling down on him aligned with the boy’s ass-bobbing. Harry could feel the pit of his stomach tightened and tightened until it couldn’t go any further. Unable to hold it back any longer, he let out streams of cum all over Severus’ hand and chest, screaming Severus’ name in completion. The tightness of Harry’s clenching channel drew out Severus’ own seed. His body arched forward, letting himself empty into the boy’s channel before lying back on the bed, panting breathelessly. Harry waited until his tremors died before pulling out and lying on Severus, panting just as heavily. Severus whimpered so softly that it could barely be heard. In truth, he didn’t want Harry to pull out just yet; he wanted the ring of muscles to engulf him just a bit longer.

            “I love you, Severus,” Harry whispered. “Forever.”

            “As do I, Harry,” Severus whispered back. “As do I.”

            The two lovers stayed that way until Harry discovered that it was late and that he should be going home to Albus’, only to be pulled back to bed by the disgruntled Potions Master and ravaged again until the boy was literally too weak to leave him.


	46. Chapter 46

            Draco stepped out of the car, not feeling too good of himself as he stood there in front of his Uncle Sirius’ home. After managing to finish at least half of the class in the day and resting on Ron’s bed while trying to fight his morning sickness the rest of the afternoon, Ron and Hermione helped him to Severus’ dorm so that he could pack up to get moving to Sirius’ house at Grimmauld’s Place, the renowned Black estate which was bought over and run by the Black family for generations. Severus requested that Ron lend him his father’s blue Cadillac (Arthus Weasley acquired it from a Muggle who wanted to sell it to pay his mortgage) because where they were passing through to get to the estate was Muggle territory, and Fred and George, who were dying to give the car a test-drive, volunteered to drive them. It was the first time Draco had ever ridden on a Muggle vehicle, being that he was born and raised in the wizarding world, and while Severus and the Old Married Couple (who tagged along for the ride) assured the blonde that it was perfectly safe, the older Weasley twins were having the time of their lives.

            This seemed all too weird for Draco in such turn of events, but with his child, or children as it maybe, on the way he was willing to do anything. He just hoped Severus knew what he was doing. Severus, on the other hand, knew exactly what he was doing and what he was up against. Giving his godson a reassuring look, he helped Draco to carry his luggage and told everyone else to stay put before he walked up to the front door and knocked. Moments later, Sirius answered the door. As usual, he had a bottle in his hand and his breath stank of alcohol.

            “Oh, you’re here,” Sirius said sulkily. “C’mon in.”

            Severus nodded and ushered Draco inside the house. He didn’t plan on staying long since he had to write the letter for Draco to Albus and the Ministry stating Draco’s upcoming absence to school and make Narcissa sign it.

            “I am sure you know each other. I have things at school to finish up, so I will take my leave for now. You’ll be in good hands, Drake. Trust me. Now Black,” he said in a low voice, “If I found you did something to Draco I will have you wish you were never born.”

            “Whatever, Snivellus. Now just leave the brat behind and get lost. Your stench is killing me.”

            Severus nodded, ruffled the blonde’s head and left without another word, leaving Draco there to fend for himself. Draco ran to the nearest window to see the blue Cadillac drive away until it disappeared out of sight before standing still, looking at Sirius listlessly, not sure what else was there to do. Sirius stared long and hard at Draco before taking a swig from his whiskey.

            “So,” Sirius broke the silence. “Getting knocked up by your slave, eh? That’s rich.”

            “So?” Draco put his hands over his belly, daring him to say something stupid. “It’s none of your business.”

            “Oh? Well, I’m still your uncle,” Sirius raised a brow and moved closer towards the young blonde. “Your _legitimate_ and _biological_ uncle, that is, unlike that ‘Uncle Sev’ of yours there. So it’s entirely my business.”

            “What are you going to do? Give me a lecture too? Believe me, I have heard them all.”

            “Mmhmm,” Sirius took another swig of whiskey before continuing, “Well, I don’t really give a damn, honestly, even if it _is_ my business. You can go get yourself knocked up by a goblin or something for all I care. It’s your funeral,” he then turned around and barked, “Paprika!”

            The said Paprika came rushing out in a split second. She had short hair framing her face a darker shade of red than Ron’s, and she was as fair as Draco. To Draco’s surprise, she was scantily-clad with only an apron and nothing else underneath, like someone who had nothing to wear because it was laundry day. Draco secretly wondered if all of Sirius’ hired help was dressed that way.

            “Yes, Master?” Paprika asked in a thick Spanish accent before letting out a squeak when Sirius slapped her ass flirtatiously.

            “Take him to his room. You know where it is,” Sirius ordered, before glancing back at Draco as he walked off nonchalantly, “Dinner is at 6. It won’t wait for you, so if you miss it and have nothing to eat, not my problem.”

            “Th…This way, Young Master,” Paprika said, her facial expression showing that she was feeling rather awkward to be in the presence of a stranger, especially when she’s donned in such godforsaken attire.

            Draco sighed in relief. At least he wasn’t going to make him do anything crazy. Sirius had a reputation for giving out crazy demands and considered one of the eccentrics of the aristocrat families, next to Lucius. He nodded after the man and followed Paprika to his room. It was not very far. It only took him two flights of steps and past three doors to get there, and inside it was modestly furnished with the essentials of a guestroom. As Paprika set his luggage on one corner and helped him empty out the contents, Draco sat on the bed and smiled.

            “Thank you very much for showing me. Did you set this room up by yourself?”

            Paprika looked up at him confusedly. No one had ever thanked her before, not in such a sincere manner. She looked down, blushing brightly as she nodded.

            “I’m sure you’ve heard Sirius told you about my condition.”

            “Yes, Young Master,” Paprika nodded and folded and hung Draco’s clothes into their proper places in the wardrobe. “Master Sirius has told us about the…nature of your pregnancy.”

            “Then you must know that by helping me hiding out like this, you and everyone here in this house, Sirius included, are accessories and accomplices in assisting a fugitive of the Ministry.”

            “We work under Master Sirius’ orders, Young Master. We live to serve him and if we are to be convicted by his orders, so be it.”

            “You sound so much like the father of my child when he was still courting me,” Draco chuckled, bringing his knees to his chest and laid his head on it. “So…obedient.”

            Paprika blushed again as she put other things that were in Draco’s luggage into the proper places.

            “When you’re done, can you bring me some ginger snaps? A friend of mine told me that it’ll work wonders for morning sickness.”

            “I’ll…I’ll see what I can do,” Paprika smiled at Draco’s soft order. It’s been so long since someone actually asked her something nicely. After putting Draco’s books on the study table, she walked away quickly to get what the Young Master needed. Draco could tell from her face that she couldn’t wait to tell the rest of the hired help about the nice little Young Master she just met. Whispering a spell, he closed the door and got off the bed. He walked to the window and looked out, hoping that his beloved Remus was alive and well.

\--:--

            Remus still huddled at one side between the coal barrel, sneezing occasionally, missing his beloved, totally oblivious about whatever was going on in the outside world. Talk had gone around the house about Draco’s absence when they realized that their little Young Master had not come home for quite some time now. Nothing like a woman scorn to get the secrets flying when, coming a month since Draco’s absence, one of the maids who brought tea to Narcissa for her Secret Wives’ Club overheard her Mistress talking to her girlfriends about not getting it on with Lucius because of the impotency curse cast on him as punishment for losing the duel with Severus. When asked about the reason behind the duel, Narcissa exposed the family’s dark secret and the maid had a field day telling it to everyone else in the household. Most of the staff, slaves and guards knew the truth behind everything, but was wise enough not to mention it in front of the Master and Mistress lest they want to be severely punished.

            It was only a matter of time before Remus found out. Once a day Remus was given food and since one stupid guard, who was only recently employed and thought he was weak, didn’t think it would be any harm teasing the half-werewolf with that piece of news. As he went in to give him food he spouted his mouth off.

            “Heard you made the Master pretty angry.”

            Remus kept quiet. He was used to taunts and jeers since he knew he was a slave and hierarchy-wise, he was the lowest. He just took his food without a word and waited for the guard to leave. That gave the guard the impression he would not be in any trouble.

            “I just don’t know why he would want to be shaken up with yer kid,” the guard shook his head, walking back to the door to carry on his guarding duties. Remus looked up at that last statement.

            “Excuse me? What did you say?”

            “Yer kid. The Young Master was thrown out for having yer kid. I mean if he wanted a kid that bad he could have come to me. I would have done him right,” the guard cackled cruelly as he made a rude gesture of thrusting his hips into the air.

            “You will not refer to Young Master in that manner!” Remus shouted, standing up suddenly and towering over the guard.

            “And what are ya going to do about, dog boy? It’s only a matter of time before the kid growing inside dies neways. Master Malfoy is seeing to that.”

            “He will not lay a finger on my cub!” Remus’ voice started to get bestial as his emotions began to draw in his wolf nature to surface, although the guard failed to notice it as he was up in the clouds enjoying himself taunting the half-werewolf.

            “Maybe after that kid is gone, I can have a go at the Young Master. Besides, he couldn’t really be that bad of a piece of ass. Ya liked it.”

            Remus’ blood boiled, feeling the beast within him creeping into his system. He couldn’t care less about reigning in these feelings, even though deep down inside him, he knew it was a big mistake and might cost him his freedom. All he could think of right now was to tear this vulgar man into shreds and show Lucius what for. He moved in a deathly manner towards the guard, growling in his throat. That was when the guard had now realized his error and ran for the door, trying to close it quick. Unfortunately for him, the werewolf nature had finally overpowered his human nature and took control of his sanity. Remus let out a bestial roar and grabbed him by the jugular. His transformation soon began as he continued to strangle the guard with his jaws. Fur began to grow and his face and physique began to become wolfish by the second as he had the guard in his mouth, gurgling and scratching at him, desperately trying to get him to let go. His transformation, at this state, was faster than his usual transformation during the full moon period, and once it was complete, with one snap he bit the guard’s head off and tore at him with a vengeance, like a hungry animal given a piece of meat. Within moments, what was left of the guard were shreds and mince meat. With Lucius dead set in his mind, Remus tore out of the coal cellar and stormed into the house, startling everyone in the household.

            Lucius, on the other hand, was in his study, working on his papers and still trying to get used to not having an erection, even though he tried. Sex life was not very fruitful for him and things were getting sour between him and his wife, who was often left disappointed and out of the room to grab any unlucky man around the house to fuck her blind. He cursed inwardly at the man who gave him such a strong curse and was not feeling very appreciative at the moment when he heard the commotion outside. A maid who came barging into his study without the courtesy of knocking was not doing him any better.

            “Master! Master!” the maid shouted breathlessly.

            “What is it?!” Lucius barked. He was clenching a letter opener at the moment, and it was not looking good for the maid.

            “It’s…It’s…”

            Her words were cut short when Remus the wolf barged in and grabbed her by the waist, shaking her like a rag doll until she tore in half. The top half of her body flew across Lucius’ head and slammed against the bookshelf, staining the area with her blood. The wolf growled as it spat out the lower half of the body, its eyes burning golden, hell bent on killing Lucius. Lucius grabbed for his cane and took off both the black covering to reveal the silver rod inside and took out his wand in the process.

           “How did you get out?! I swear I never get good help these days,” Lucius growled as he waved the silver rod at him. “Back, beast! Get back!”

            Remus snarled and aimed its paws at a nearby shelf and hit it towards Lucius, in which the blonde ducked and went of the letter opener, which was also made of pure silver, and threw it at Remus, hoping for it to strike his heart. Lucky for the wolf, it had shifted its stance and the letter opener stabbed through his elbow. It roared and swiped the thing off, drawing blood. Lucius took advantage of the distraction to go out the window. He started out across the lawn, hoping to get others to help. He mentally berated himself for not destroying the creature when he had a chance. He kept telling himself that he should have just given the wolf the Killing Curse on the day he decided to lock him in the coal cellar rather than just imprisoning him for the sole joy of seeing his son helpless towards his power over the boy’s slave.

            Remus, after getting over the initial shock of being stabbed, chased after him, crashing through the window in the process, its eyes glowing and teeth bared in bloody murder. Lucius was scared shitless and it was kinda funny to watch him running across the lawn, his limbs going as fast as he can. If Draco were there to see it (or anyone else who knew Lucius, for that matter), he would’ve rolled on the floor laughing his ass off at the pathetic state his father was in. Finally, the wolf saw that Lucius could run no more and took the opportunity to pounce onto him, growling as its jaws of death dangerously close to his jugular. It was about to bite when…

            “REMUS, STOP!!!”

            Remus looked up to see Severus jumping out of the carriage and started running towards him. As much as the Potions Master would love to see Lucius torn limb from limb, it would not be good for Draco to hear his beloved being arrested for murdering his father. Harry, who came along with him as well, got off and followed behind him. The wolf glared at the both of them, angry for being interrupted.

            “You cannot do this,” Severus said, brandishing his wand just in case. “Draco would not like you tearing his Father limb from limb. Let him go, now!”

            Remus growled loudly at him, ignoring him and aimed for the jugular. Severus wanted to use the Bat-Bogey Hex on him when he felt a small figure pushed past him and running towards the wolf.

            “STOP!!! STOP IT, REMUS!!!”

            “Harry!” Severus exclaimed as he tried to grab the boy to stop him but was too late. “Harry, no!!”

            Remus got frustrated and lunged out to bite whoever was interrupting him, not knowing that it was his little friend Harry. Harry held out his hands and blocked him, his wet nose on his palms. Remus tried to advance but couldn’t, like there was an invisible force telling it not to.

            “Don’t do this, Remy! Don’t kill Draco’s father. It won’t solve anything!”

            “Harry, what are you doing?” Severus called out, his heart beating furiously for Harry’s safety. “Come back here!”

            Remus tried again to release himself from Harry’s hold on his wet nose and bite him but failed again. It couldn’t understand. Harry was small and tiny compared to him. It wasn’t Harry using superhuman strength to hold it back, nor did it look like Harry was exerting any display of strength or power to do so. Harry was just standing there, holding onto his nose like someone holding a poster on the wall in place. It could just tear itself away and snap its jaws at him, but Harry’s presence alone made it feel like it must obey him.

            “It won’t solve anything, Remy. It won’t bring Draco to you like this. You will be locked away. You will be killed by high-up people. Do you want that? Do you want to upset Draco and your cubs doing this?”

            Remus glared at Lucius with a vengeance, its demanding that the blonde’s blood be shed for making him and his lover’s life so miserable. Lucius tried to scoot away through an opportune gap between them and Remus wanted to hold him down, but Harry grabbed a fistful of his fur to bring him closer to an embrace.

            “Draco’s father’s been punished enough. Calm down. We’ll take you home. Home to where Draco and the cubs are waiting. There, there…”

            As Harry held the wolf close and patted its head like a person would to a pet dog, Remus whined in his arms, wanting to beg Harry to let it go to exact its revenge on Lucius, but Harry’s words sunk into his human conscience urging him to accept the truth that Harry was right. It wanted to fight it but its human sanity slowly crept into its system, telling it to succumb to Harry and listen to his words. Finally, the wolf let out a howl of agony and was defeated in Harry’s embrace, allowing its human nature take over its mind.

            “H…Harry…?” Severus breathed, astounded at the sight he just saw. He had not moved from his spot due to the shock but he still wanted to know what the hell was going on.

            “Thanks for subduing him, boy,” Lucius got up and straightened himself. He took out his silver rod, ready to get back at him, “Now, if you please…”

            “You are relieved of him, Malfoy,” Severus stepped forward, finally finding his motor skills. “I’m taking him to his mate.”

            “Not a chance!” Lucius barked at him. “He’s still technically _my_ slave. I bought him, and there is no way in hell I’m selling him to you! You’ve already taken away my most treasured pleasure! Haven’t you taken enough away from me??”

            “Not when you think torturing and killing someone’s lover is some sort of game to you. There is no if, ands or buts about this, Malfoy. I’ve already brought the paperwork I’ve attained from the manager of the business and also a letter in which I require your wife to sign, which is initially why I am here. I am taking him to his mate and his cubs and that’s final.”

            “Give me one good reason why I should just let you take this half-breed and give him to that family traitor!”

            “I will tell everyone I know that you let your son get knocked up by a slave.”

            “So what? I bet everyone in my household already knows that. Hell, some of the close family would probably also know about it. Cissy made sure of that just to humiliate me, no doubt about it. What damage can you do?”

            “Well, they are all people who would probably help you keep a secret,” Severus noted, “but I suppose the Ministry wouldn’t like it too much if they hear you kept a half-breed without sterilizing it first.”

            “You…You wouldn’t dare!” Lucius glowered over the Potions Master.

            “Wouldn’t I?” Severus tilted his head to the side, challenging Lucius to say no. “No matter how much you allow Cornelius to sweep everything you do under the rug and lick your boots for your money, you know very well that when it comes to half-breeds like Remus, he is still bound by the tight bureaucracy and legislations of the Ministry, especially when it is that old hag Umbridge who is dedicated to rid everything that is not remotely human.”

            “Cornelius is nothing! I’ve paid my way to get through the highest ranks of the Ministry. Umbridge can never hold it against me…”

            “Don’t fool yourself, Malfoy. No one can make Umbridge budge when it comes to this issue. You know as well as I do that she is a total Nazi when it comes to pure-blood. She’s even worse than you in the elitism ideology. If it weren’t for the Protection Act for Magical Beings, which she is still trying to oppose, those who know your secret would be singing to her straightaway and she’d be right at your doorstep now bringing Dementors and Aurors at her wake. Do you want to be thrown into Azkaban for ignoring the simplest of rules everyone in this entire wizarding community is bound to obey? Do you want your son, your only heir to the Malfoy inheritance, as much as you want to deny him, to be arrested as well and let your wealth and property to be put under the Ministry’s accounts? Cissy would definitely _not_ appreciate this, since she is in it as well.”

            Lucius glared at him with a vengeance, trying to fight the disgust of admitting that Severus was right about everything. If the Ministry had heard wind about his shameful family secret, not only his entire family would be sent to Azkaban, his wealth, property, slaves and everything else that he owned would become the state’s belongings, and it was a no-brainer that many of his extended families would be eager to take it off their hands and claim it as their own. He let out an exasperated growl and flung the silver rod he held in contempt.

            “Fine! I’ll draw up the papers! I’ll sign whatever you want! Just take that filthy animal and go!”

            “Good,” Severus nodded, then turned to Harry. “Go back to the carriage, Harry. Bring Remy with you. Lucius and I need to settle some things. I’ll be right with you.”

            Harry nodded and tugged at Remy’s fur, “C’mon, Remy. Let’s go see Draco. Your cubs are waiting.”

            As Severus followed behind Lucius to make sure that he kept his word, Harry guided the werewolf into the carriage and lay on his back, nuzzling at the fur. It was not exactly a pleasant thing to do for Lucius, but the blonde kept his end of the bargain. He signed the papers Severus prepared stating that Draco was now the owner of Remus J. Lupin, and also volunteered to sign the letter Severus written stating the reason of Draco’s absence from school as he didn’t want Narcissa to piss off by Severus than she already was.

            All the while, Harry kept stroking and easing the whimpering Remus.

            “That’s a good boy, Remy. That’s a good boy…”


	47. Chapter 47

            After making Lucius sign all the necessary papers, Severus quickly joined Harry in the carriage and made their way to Sirius’ place, but not before making a pit-stop at Kingcross Station to switch vehicles because of the nature of their journey. Fred and George were eagerly waiting in the blue Cadillac for them and helped them bring Remus into the car without alerting suspicious eyes. Harry continued to pet and soothe Remus along the way as the wolf did not like the cramped space of the Muggle vehicle, and Severus finally saw firsthand Harry’s Creature Charmer power that Hagrid and Charlie raved so much about at work. Severus secretly wondered what else does his beloved had under his sleeve.

            It didn’t take long for the car to arrive at Grimmauld’s Place, thanks to the twins’ driving and within moments, they were right in front of the gate entrance of the estate. Double-checking to see if there were any prying eyes and saw there were none, Severus gave Harry the green light to let the wolf out.

            “C’mon, Remy,” Harry tweaked Remus’ ear. “We’re here.”

            Remus whined excitedly and almost jumped out of the car with glee.

            “Now just in case, I don’t want him attacking Draco. He may seem like he is tame enough, but I’m not taking any chances, so if he seems like it, pull him back,” Severus said before stepping out of the car.

            Harry nodded and held onto Remy’s scruff of the neck and waited for Severus to walk past them and go up to the door to knock before following after him. Paprika was serving Draco his usual order of ginger snaps when they heard the knock on the door. Ever since Draco came in a month ago, Paprika would jump to the chance to serve him. In fact, everyone seemed to fight over the privilege to meet Draco’s every whim and fancy ever since Paprika spouted her mouth amongst them telling about ‘the kindest, sweetest Young Master she had ever seen in all her life’. Her words were proven when Draco did not join Sirius for dinner one night, but came into the kitchen in the middle of the night requesting something to eat. The smile he gave him and the way he asked them if there was anything edible, and the way he insisted to eat together with them and engaged in such friendly conversation made the hired help feel like they would do anything for him, regardless the task at hand.

            “Shall I get it, Young Master?” Paprika offered.

            “Yes, please do. Call me if it’s anyone but my father,” Draco said. He would’ve gotten the door himself but as he said, he’d rather not bump into Lucius.

            Paprika happily rushed down, ignoring the fact that she was wearing her usual naked apron as ordered by Sirius. She answered the door and the first she saw was the nose and mouth of Remus. Terrified to see that it belonged to the huge werewolf, she screamed and backed away. Remus rushed in hurriedly, dragging the poor Harry along with it by the heels and making the poor girl run to the nearest barrier she could find to hide herself. Severus caught onto Harry’s weight and that made the wolf stop as Harry’s grip on Remus’ scruff of the neck was still firm, forbidding it from taking another step. Remus whined and wanted to get away but Harry held him in a death grip.

            “No, Remy. Stay.”

            “What’s going on?” Draco heard the commotion and made his way downstairs. As soon as he saw Remus in Harry’s hands, he beamed and ran to him without a second thought, hugging him and screaming, “REMUS!!! Oh Merlin, Remus!!!”

            Remus let out a canine smile and whined happily, licking his little Young Master from head to toe. Seeing Remus not attacking him, he let go of the wolf’s scruff and allowed the two lovers to reunite and rekindled their flame, giggling at the sight.

            “Well I am glad he didn’t try to attack,” Severus said, but there was a smile on his face to see his godson so happy.

            “Remus, oh, I am so glad to see you,” Draco ran his hand through the soft fur. “And in one piece too. I was afraid Father was going to…”

            “He would’ve been if we hadn’t got there in time.”

            “What? What happened?” Draco looked to Severus. Severus shut the door behind him and gestured them to continue their conversation in the living room.

            “I am not entirely sure, but when we got there, he was about to have you Father for a snack.”

            “Yup,” Harry grinned. “You should have seen him. Mr. Malfoy looked like he was going to pee in his pants or something. Luckily we got there in the nick of time. I talked to him and make him calm down. Severus drew up some papers for him to sign, something about changing ownership to you.”

            “He’s right on that,” Severus confirmed Harry’s statement. “Sorry it took me so long, but the manager of the business seems to have a grudge on me and want nothing to do with me ever since I made him keep his part of the deal of releasing Harry. I had to bring along Sirius’ estranged cousin Tonks who works under the Ministry to convince him to show up if he still wanted his business to be kept under the rug and didn’t want it to go down the toilet.”

            “You mean Auntie Nymphadora? The one everybody didn’t like because she’s got that weird shape-shifting powers or something?” Draco asked in surprise. When Severus gave him a nod as a reply, he smiled, “She is like the coolest relative I’ve got so far. I just don’t understand why nobody likes her.”

            “Maybe because of the fact that her mother decided to derail from elitism and marry a Muggle-born, I suppose, but that’s what you get for having people like your parents.”

            “I met her,” Harry said. “She is so nice and sweet, and I like her doing that hair colour-change thing. It’s fun!”

            “Maybe I should go visit her sometimes,” Draco thought out loud. “That is if she doesn’t hate me for my family.”

            “She wouldn’t think of you any less, Drake,” Severus said. “She even volunteered to be your child’s godmother.”

            “She’s welcomed to do so. So am I really Remus’ master now?”

            “It’s all in the papers,” Harry handed the contract to Draco to read. The blonde read through it and smiled.

            “I’m glad. I will take things from here then. Thanks for helping me out…”

            “What’s going on?”

            Everyone looked up to see Sirius coming into the living room, with Paprika hiding behind him. Apparently, Sirius was too drunk to care that someone was in his household screaming bloody murder and Paprika had to go get him off the couch of his drinking room to do something about it.

            “Paprika was giving me a killer headache yelling at my ear insisting I come downstairs and…” Sirius turned to see Remus the wolf at Draco’s feet and pointed at it in disgust, “What is that wolf doing here? No pets allowed here in my home!”

            “This is my Remus Lupin, father of my child, in wolf form. He will return to normal soon enough,” Draco said calmly before his stomach started getting queasy. “Now if you will excuse me, I am going to take Remus up to my room, then puke my guts out. Sorry I can’t chat with you longer, everyone. I’m sure Sirius will see you all out.”

            “Go ahead,” Severus said. “You take care now. I will bring in your private tutor as soon as Albus sends him or her here.”

            Draco nodded and took Remus by the scruff of the neck upstairs. Sirius looked incredulously after them before turning sharply at Severus.

            “ _That_ was _not_ part of the deal, Snivellus! We agreed to bunk in _one_ person, not _two_! And that half-breed nonetheless!!!”

            “Just think of him as an additional slave into your household,” Severus raised his brow. “Do we have to go over this again?”

            Sirius’ eyes seemed to seethe with vengeance before growling, “Fine! But if there's any more addition, I swear I’ll chuck all of them out!”

            “Fine,” Severus growled back. He didn’t like that argument anyway. Taking Harry by the shoulder, he waved goodbye to Draco who was looking down at him from the banister and left the house, not even sparing a second glance at it. Sirius turned to look at Draco grudgingly before stomping off to goodness knows where he wanted to go. After that tense moment, Draco went into his room in relief. Remus whined and pulled at Draco’s shirt to take him to the bathroom, remembering that Draco had wanted to puke his guts out.

            “I know,” Draco nodded and made his way there. As soon as he had his head over the toilet bowl he vomited whatever he had just eaten. Groaning, he glared at Remus, “Even ginger snaps doesn’t help, and I blame you for this.”

            Remus gave him a lupine-like apologetic grin, then rubs his head against Draco's back to ease the nausea.

            “I wish you were human again. I could really use a hug right about now.”

            With that, Draco puked again, and for the next ten minutes, the blonde had his puking episodes on and off until there was nothing else to regurgitate out but bile. Remus whined apologetically as he tried to ease the vomiting. It felt so helpless that it couldn’t do anything about this, but unlike his normal transformations, it’ll probably be about a fortnight before it could slowly revert back to human, just like the first time it happened to it. After Draco felt that he had probably emptied out his gut, he got up and washed before lying down on the bed. Remus sat on the floor, watching forlornly at its little Young Master—now officially its Master—looked like he had just run a long marathon.

            “Get up here,” Draco patted the bed. “At least I can have a fur pillow.”

            Remus yapped before climbing up the bed and snuggled against Draco, with Draco settled nicely against its belly. Draco snuggled close and pulled a blanket over it, stroking the wolf’s fur affectionately.

            “Granger—that’s Harry’s friend, and mine, I guess—said I could be having twin or multiples. I don’t know if I can do more than one baby. I just want one. A little girl that looks like her Papa, that’s all I ask for.”

            Remus looked down at him for a while with a surprised expression, then reached down to sniff at his belly. It carried on sniffing for a while before looking up at Draco with loving eyes and whined.

            “What?” Draco leaned up at Remus’ whine.

            Remus patted on Draco’s belly with his paw, then tapped the bed twice. Unfortunately, Draco didn’t understand.

            “Yes, the babies are in there.”

            Remus shook its head and repeated its actions again twice.

            “I’m sorry but I don’t know what you are saying, Remy.”

            Remus bowed its head, then looked around for something to portray its meaning. It found two small pillows lying about on the floor and picked them up, then put both of them side by side against Draco’s belly, then repeated its actions again, patting his belly and then patting at the two pillows.

            “Oh, you want a pillow, well, why didn’t you say so?”

            Remus bowed its head in defeat. Draco still didn’t understand him. It really hated its condition right now. As it tried to figure out what ways it could use to get it through Draco’s head about what it wanted to say, a knock on the door was heard.

            “Who is it?” Draco asked.

            “It’s me, Paprika,” Paprika’s voice came timidly from outside.

            “Come in.”

            Paprika peeked into the room first and saw Remus there. Her eyes widened with terror and squeaked as she jerked backwards.

            “D-D-Does he b-b-bite…?”

            “Not unless you threaten him or me,” Draco replied, grinning as he stroked Remus’ head.

            Paprika swallowed tentatively and entered the room with a tray of food in hand. Keeping a wary eye on Remus, she placed the food on the study table and said, “Master is having some drinking buddies with him, so I thought maybe you’d like to have your dinner in your room.”

            “Oh yes, thank you,” Draco nodded, pulling the blanket off. The last thing he wanted was to be in a group of crazy drunken old men talking about the yester years and singing stupid old songs with their appalling voices that could crack glass. “But forgive me if I can’t finish everything. I have just done puking my stomach inside out.”

            “It’s OK,” Paprika replied. “In fact I got you something light. We have oatmeal and cheese crackers, and some warm milk to ease your stomach.”

            “Sounds good.”

            Remus whined, still trying to tell Draco what it’s trying to tell him before, repeating the action. He had to know before the truth hit him too late. Draco noticed him and turned to Paprika.

            “Oh, did you bring Remus something to eat?”

            “Yes, I made Gustav give me some raw beef from the larder for him…” Paprika stopped short as she looked curiously at Remus’ actions. “I think he’s trying to tell you something, Young Master.”

            “I know but I don’t know exactly what it is. First I thought he wanted a pillow, then I just thought he wanted food. Maybe…” Draco blushed at the thought.

            Paprika looked at his actions again and said, “I dunno. I think he’s trying to tell you something about your twins that you’re carrying.”

            “I don’t think that is…TWINS?!” Draco exclaimed at the last statement Paprika made and looked at Remus incredulously, “T-Twins…?!”

            Remus nodded in relief, his little Master finally getting the picture, thanks to Paprika.

            “Err…Sorry, I thought you knew…” Paprika stammered, but her words didn’t reach him as the poor blonde crossed his eyes and fainted. Remus whined worriedly as it picked him up by the collar to bring him back to bed. She rushed quickly to tend to him, shouting in shock, “Y-Young Master!!! Pull yourself together!!”

            After a moment of having a wet towel on his forehead and Remus licking his face, Draco came around. The first thing he did was smile and reached up to scratched Remus behind the ear.

            “Woah, that was an odd dream,” Draco sighed.

            “Oh, thank Merlin, Young Master, you’re awake!” Paprika let out a breath of relief seeing her Young Master coming to.

            “I’m OK, Remy,” Draco said, trying to ease Remus’ whining and laughed at a thought. “I dreamt about you and Paprika saying that I was having twins.”

            “Umm...It wasn’t a dream,” Paprika corrected. “I told you that just now, really. I was just translating what the wolf told you. I’m sorry…I thought you knew…”

            “I thought I was having one!” Draco jerked up, the truth sunk in like a boulder thrown into the sea. “I can’t raise two babies! Damn that Mudblood Granger! It’s all her filthy mouth telling me and cursing me about having…”

            “Y-Young Master, calm down. It’s not good for the babies…” Paprika tried to calm him down, knowing that it was just the mood-swings talking.

            “NOT GOOD FOR THE BABIES?! WHAT ABOUT ME?!”

            Afraid that his beloved was getting hysterical, Remus pinned Draco down gently on the bed, letting out a dog purr to try and comfort him. Draco wanted to hit out at Remus for getting him into his situation but ended up breaking down into tears instead. Paprika patted Draco’s shoulder, hoping that it would ease his mood-swing.

            “Well, you got your wolf to protect you. Everything would be just fine, Young Master. At least you’re carrying life, unlike me.”

            Draco was still crying too hard to fully understand what she was saying. Seeing that she couldn’t do any good at the moment, Remus nudged his wet nose at Paprika’s hand, urging her to leave.

            “I’ll leave you two alone now,” Paprika nodded and left the room quietly, closing the door silently behind her.

            “I can’t do this, Remus. I just can’t…” Draco sobbed, shaking his head as he became a teary mess in the wolf’s embrace. _How could this happen to me?_ he thought sadly. _How could everything that is wrong in this world happen to me?! Why can’t I be just like everyone else…?!_

            Remus whined and pulled Draco against its belly like a mother dog would to a pup, then curled around Draco like a warm blanket, continuing to comfort him with its dog purr. Oh, how it wished it was human so that it could do more than this.

            Paprika, who listened in for a while from behind the door, sighed and left to tend to her Master Sirius’ orders. She will fully explain what she had meant just now when the time was right.


	48. Chapter 48

            Over the last two weeks Draco had been melancholy. While he waited for the private tutor to show up, he carried on going to school and coming home, but of course had to avoid certain classes for ‘health reasons’, especially potions class, all the while enduring the fact that Remus was still a wolf. It was a little tough for him because most importantly, he couldn’t understand Remus’ gestures and had to have Paprika translate whatever it wanted to say, and also he couldn’t feel Remus’ arms around him whenever he needed them the most. He took comfort that he could feel the wolf’s nice soft fur whenever they hit the sack for the day, but it was just not enough.

            Draco made it official to his friends during one of their secret hush-hush meeting in the prefects’ bathroom that he was carrying twins. Hermione had wanted to say “I told you so” but Ron gave her a warning look, telling her that now was not the time to be smug about things. Harry was very happy to hear the news and gave the blonde a congratulatory hug, and the rest of the conversation was about the good news of Remus finally out of Lucius’ grasp and into Draco’s custody, in which The Old Married Couple wished them all the best of luck in their relationship. He also told Severus about the twins he was carrying and Severus promised that he would whip up some health potions to keep him in check because of his age and the nature of his pregnancy, and also reminded Draco that the private tutor will be sent to him once he was about 5 months pregnant and starting to show.

            Sirius didn’t take too well with Remus’ presence. Whenever Draco went to the dining room to eat, Sirius would yell “No dogs at the table!” and whacked him with a rolled up Daily Prophet to shoo him away. Draco had told him time and time again that Remus was the father of his child—now children—and he should be treated with respect but Sirius would not hear of it. He insisted that Remus, wolf or not, was still a slave and should be treated as such, and insisted that he have his meals at the kitchen just like everyone else. Not wanting his beloved to get into anymore trouble, Remus relented to Sirius’ decision and stayed in the kitchen while Draco had his meals. Of course, it often ended up in a sour note and Draco would excuse himself from the table to carry on his meals in the kitchen, accompanying the poor wolf, although it wasn’t half that bad as the hired help get to chit-chat with their beloved Young Master.

            Today was different. Remus was now finally human again. Draco did not know that it took him that long to revert back, and Remus couldn’t find the perfect example to tell the blonde when he would be back to normal again, thus Paprika unable to tell him. He just woke up one morning after two weeks naked in an empty bed (because Draco had left to go to school) and Paprika, haven’t yet seen Remus in his human form, screamed and threw books at him, demanding the ‘intruder’ to get out. It took three guards subduing him and a pissed Sirius with a hangover to have a look at him to realize that the Remus in wolf form and the Remus in their captivity was one and the same. Paprika apologized profusely as she provided him with the clothes, and Remus just shook it off good-naturedly. He was putting on a shirt when Draco came into the room after surviving another day in class.

            “Hey, Drake,” Remus smiled, almost glad he could use his voice again.

            “REMUS!!!” Draco exclaimed and ran to him, jumping up on him and wrapped his limbs around the older man like a koala bear. Remus chuckled and hugged him back.

            “Careful now, Drake. You’re with cubs.”

            Draco bit his lip at that reminder. That was the last thing he’d like to be told of.

            “Remus, I just can’t. I don’t know if I can handle two babies.”

            “It’s OK, Drake. You don’t have to suffer alone anymore. I’m with you now, remember? I’ll help you through this hurdle.”

            Draco nodded, still holding onto him, not wanting to let go as if he feared Remus would turn back to wolf if he did. He trusted Remus to keep his word and wouldn’t want it any other way. He looked around, inspecting Remus’ body.

            “But how are you? Did Father hurt you?”

            “He stabbed me with his silver letter opener to distract me while he got away,” Remus showed the stab wound he got, making Draco whine with worry, “but other than that, I think I’m in one piece.”

            “Did he hurt you after he found out about our cubs?”

            Remus shook his head, replying, “Surprisingly, no. Not sure why he didn’t approach me with this issue or just slaughter me alive about this, but I didn’t even know you had cubs until that guard who brought in my food told me. He said Lucius was going to…to…” he bit his lip at the last remark; his heart ached at the thought of it.

            “To…terminate our cubs?” Draco answered for him, in which Remus nodded. The blonde let out a wry smile and said, “He tried to, and I put up a fight with it, but ultimately it was Uncle Sev who saved me. He dueled over me. Father lost.”

            “You’re fibbing!” Remus exclaimed in surprise. When Draco chuckled and shook his head as a reply, Remus slapped his forehead in disbelief. “Lucius had never lost a fight in his life! What was Master Snape doing?”

            “The right thing. He can’t get an erection for a long time, so I’ve heard from Sirius’ drinking buddies, although I didn’t expect that Uncle Sev would actually do it, cursing him like that. I thought their bargain of exchange when Father issued the duel was just talk.”

            Remus snorted, trying to hold back a laugh. His ex-Master, who took pride in his libido, couldn’t get an erection? Must’ve been some powerful curse Master Snape had given him.

            “So thanks to Uncle Sev, I still have your cubs.”

            “Remind me to thank your godfather properly later,” Remus sighed in relief.

            “I will.”

            So saying, Draco leaned up to kiss Remus fully on the lips. Remus kissed him back hungrily. Oh how he missed those lovely lips. It felt like forever since he last tasted those pair of sweetness. He could never get enough of it. But then again, his lungs could only hold so much air. Reluctantly he parted, tracing the blonde’s rosy swollen buds affectionately.

            “I missed you so much, Drake. I’m sorry for not being with you sooner.”

            “Well, I haven’t exactly been at home for a while,” Draco pulled him closer. “I missed you so much. I hated leaving you.”

            “So do I. I feel like I haven’t seen you in centuries.”

            After a long hesitation, Draco said with red-tinted cheeks, “You know…Uncle Sev, referring me as someone else, has been having a sort of indirect and discreet discussion with Madam Pomfrey about my condition yesterday…and she said it’s ok to have sex…Well, if you want to, that is.”

            Remus widened his eyes in surprise. Draco must have felt his need pressing against his to ask so boldly about this. He looked away, blushing as well as he replied, “I do want to. I mean, it’s been so long. But are you sure she said it’s alright?”

            “Well…she said to keep it to a minimal, at least till I am 3 months along, and also not to do it too immediately. I’ve sorta just gone past my 3rd month and am into my 4th month in two days’ time…but…”

            “Well, we’d better listen to her now, shouldn’t we?” Remus grinned as he moved out of Draco’s embrace teasingly.

            “No, please,” Draco begged, gripping hard on Remus’ sleeves. “I’m getting blue balls here…Just…Just do it slow, like making love. OK?”

            “Alright, as you wish, my lovely Drake. I’ll go nice and slow.”

            “Thank you…Mmh…!”

            Before he knew it, Remus had started nibbling Draco’s neck as his hands slowly roamed about the blonde’s body. Draco’s eyes drifted to a close, a small whimper coming out of his mouth at the pleasurable feeling of the half-wolf’s teeth and tongue on him. Gently, the older man took off Draco’s top, then leaned over to lick and suck one of his nipples while his hands caresses the baby bump in Draco’s middle. For a three-month-old belly, it did feel a little bigger than average due to the amount he was carrying and it sent a loving warmth in Remus’ heart to know that it belonged to him, a product of their undying love. The younger blonde gasped, breathing out Remus’ name and grabbing onto Remus’ shirt as the half-wolf hummed and took the other nipple into his mouth, making Draco almost smashing Remus’ face to him.

            “Remy…Oh…Dear gods…”

            Remus proceeded to remove the rest of Draco’s clothes and started licking teasingly at the tip of his cock. Draco’s breath hitched as he tried to bring the both of them to the bed so that they could do it properly.

            “Oh, fuck…” Draco spoke through gritted teeth as Remus continued to torture him with the teasing licks on the tip of his cock. Once Remus started licking along the length before taking him whole, bobbing up and down, Draco was turned into a whimpering, trembling mess. “Remus…! Remus…! Oh gods…fuck…!!”

            “Do you want me inside you?” Remus asked as he let go of his oral hold on Draco’s cock to lick his balls. “Do you want me to fill you up?”

            “Yes, I don’t want to be empty. I want to be filled to the brim.”

            Looking around, Remus’ eyes caught sight of a bottle of lotion on the side table. He lathered a generous amount on his fingers and spread it around Draco’s puckered entrance. He had wanted to prepare him with his fingers, but Draco whined in protest, wanting to feel him inside him that instant. The older man chuckled and lubricated himself with as much lotion as he could put on, then positioned his cock at that spot, nudging it a little to sort of ‘test the waters’.

            “I’m going in now,” Remus announced as he probed Draco slightly. Draco nodded.

            “Just don’t hurt the babies.”

            “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

            Slowly but surely, Remus entered Draco, pushing in all the way to the hilt. He groaned in pleasure as he finally felt the familiar tight heat around him. Oh how he missed this feeling of his beloved’s muscles gripping him tightly this way, hearing Draco screaming his approval as the blonde widened his eyes in ecstasy at the wonder of being slowly filled. He held still for a while to adjust and hold back the feeling of imploding release—he could just come by entering alone after being denied his love for so long—and gave butterfly kisses around the boy’s fair cheeks.

            “Do you want me to move?”

            “If you don’t, I will hate you for the rest of your life,” Draco growled, his eyes strewn with pretend frustration, but they were mostly glazed with lust.

            “Your wish is my command, Young Master,” Remus replied as he started moving at a moderate pace, feeling Draco’s inner muscles rubbing against his length.

            “Fuck…!!” Draco moaned, hooking his legs around Remus to pull him closer and tried to get him to come in deeper. Remus growled as he did so, careful not to go too fast. He had two little cubs to think about. As Draco enjoyed the feeling of being thrust in and out, he pulled Remus down to kiss him hard, their tongues doing a dance with one another that the blonde had learned to do so well ever since they’ve started this relationship. Remus continued to thrust into him while he carried on with the tongue dance until he hit the jackpot. Draco whined in the kiss, his nails digging through his shoulders as he could see the bright stars in his mind’s eyes.

            “Yes…Yes, right there…”

            Remus aimed for the sweet spot over and over again, capturing Draco’s neck with his teeth lightly like what canines do when they’re mating, careful not to bite through his jugular or anything. Draco could feel the slightly protruding fangs on his neck and hummed in pleasure, enjoying the feeling of being marked and possessed by his beloved half-wolf lover.

            “Yes…just like that, Remy…Oh, so good…” Draco moaned and started to stroke himself. Remus saw that and moved Draco’s hand away, taking over the handjob as he stroked him in time with his thrusts. Draco didn’t know whether he should thrust back against Remus or thrust up; they were both so pleasurable. His long neglected hormones made his near climax came faster. He could feel the familiar tightening that he had never felt for so long since he last made love with Remus at the pit of his stomach, bringing him closer and closer to the edge.

            “So close…So close, Remus…Faster…”

            “Mmh…Me too…” Remus growled, moving a little faster as his Young Master requested, his hand trying to keep up with the pace.

            Draco could no longer hold back as the bundle of nerves within him were hit over and over again until it squeezed painfully at his tightening pit of the stomach. Moments later, Draco let out a cry as he came all over Remus’ hand and on his stomach. Remus followed after seconds later, but not before pulling out and coming all over Draco’s body. He knew from the birds and the bees he learnt when he was in the business that he should not come inside a pregnant person lest it would get onto the fetus, and he wasn’t taking any chances. Both of them came a great deal, having being pent up for so long, and they literally stained each other. After emptying each other out, Draco panted breathlessly as his whole body relaxed onto the bed, while Remus waited until the tremors on his trembling body died down before lying down beside the younger blonde. Draco rolled over on his side towards Remus, resting his head under the crook of his neck and nuzzled him.

            “I’m glad you’re finally here with me. I am especially glad that my cubs now have their Daddy.”

            “So am I Drake,” Remus whispered as he caressed Draco’s baby bump and kissed Draco’s cheek. “And I will always be there for you and the babies. This I swear.”

            As they succumbed themselves into the effects of the afterglow, both of them prayed that they would be together like this forever.


	49. Chapter 49

            Ron groaned as he cleaned up the mess he made in potions class. Everybody has gone and he was all alone in the lab, mopping up the failed potion that spilled all over the floor and clearing up the rest of the lab of its equipment and ingredients, and he had to do it without using magic as per ordered by ours truly Severus Snape the Potions Master.

            The redhead sighed. This was just one of those days where everything went wrong. First he slipped and fell a flight of stairs on his way to class and needed Hermione to use the levitation spell to break his fall. Then during Transfiguration class, instead of turning an apple into a yarn ball like they were supposed to, he turned it into 6-headed garden snake, sending everyone (especially the girls) running helter-skelter out of class for fear of being bitten. During group study for History of Magic, Draco accidentally dropped a pile of books on him because he couldn’t hold back his morning sickness, which was also another insult to injury as the blonde puked all over his back. After that, during lunch, he accidentally choked on a chicken bone, which caused quite a panic, but later was helped by a Ravenclaw Muggle-born using the Heimlich maneuver to get it out. Later he was hit by a random Bludgeon during Quidditch practice when one of the Beaters hit it towards the wrong direction. The blow caused him to have temporary amnesia in which he couldn’t remember the password to get into the Gryffindor House to get his book that he left behind for Divination class, among other things. The last straw was Potions Class in which he blew up his cauldron when they were supposed to learn how to make Skele-Grow potion, resulting the redhead’s current predicament.

            “Taking your sweet time, aren’t you?”

            Ron spun round, thinking it was Prof. Snape, but instead it was his chocolate brown-haired fiancée. Hermione had been wondering why Ron had not showed up at the Great Hall since it was already past dinner time. Sure that he was still in the lab, she went down to find him, and as she expected, he was still there, rubbing the rag on the tables with a vengeance, still cleaning up the mess. Ron scowled and rolled his eyes at Hermione’s dour expression.

            “Don’t even start, Mione. I still got other crud to clean up, and it’s not easy without using magic. This is just not my day today, Mione. Someone must’ve jinxed me. I’m suspecting someone from Slytherin. They’ve been giving us the stink-eye ever since we were all hunky-dory pals with Malfoy…”

            “Less talk, more action, Ron,” Hermione reminded Ron to carry on his work because he stopped halfway to rant. Watching Ron grumble and continue wiping the tables, she sighed, “I must admit, you really are having quite a streak of bad luck. Maybe it’s just one of those days, Ron. It’ll get better tomorrow. How’s your head?”

            “Still throbbing a little, no thanks to the Bludgeon, but otherwise, I’ll live.”

            “Need any help?” Hermione offered.

            “What I need is probably a dose of that Felix-something-something to offset my bad streak,” Ron groaned, “but if you would help me clean up, I’d appreciate it very much. I am so starved for dinner right now I can eat a roast turkey whole.”

            “I’ve saved some food for you in your dorm. And it’s called Felix Felicis, Ron. Honestly, you never pay attention to class, do you?”

            “Like I said, Mione, please don’t start. You gonna help me or not?”

            “If I help, will you…” Hermione stopped short as she blushed, seemingly embarrassed to ask for whatever she had in mind, even though it wasn’t exactly their first time.

            “Will I what? I don’t have all day, you know,” Ron raised a brow, curious as to why Hermione was sporting that colour on her cheeks.

            “Will you…take me?”

            Ron widened his eyes in shock. He knew exactly what she was asking for, especially when it was emphasized by her crimson cheeks.

            “B-But…But I thought we agreed to…you know…do it once we’re officially married??”

            “Yeah, well, that is what we said last time, and the time before that, and the time _before_ that, still you managed to get into my pants by other means,” Hermione replied, looking away sheepishly, her face defiant as if she still wanted to keep whatever pride she had left after spouting out such embarrassing request.

            “Well…” Ron scratched his chin nervously. “I can’t help it if all the stress goes down to my balls…but I gotta keep my promise. It’s not like the dildo didn’t work wonders.”

            It was true that they had been experimenting with sex toys during their time as engaged couples. Ron and Hermione had promised each other, once their feelings for each other was realized, that they would not engage in sexual intercourse and keep themselves pure till their first night as a wedded couple (mostly just to please their parents and keep their minds at ease from ‘unfortunate accidents’). But it did not mean that they could not try other ways to satisfy their growing lust for each other. Out of curiosity, The Old Married Couple had went down to the red districts of Hogsmeade to check out what truly went down there and, against their better judgment, they bought themselves a couple of dildos and vibrators. Once in a while, when they felt like their hormones were threatening to burst, they would use the toys to satisfy each other. They bungled a little at first, but soon got the hang of it, but they only did that once in a blue moon because they were still in school grounds.

            “It is not the same as the real thing, plus it’s not like you have never done it before,” Hermione frowned and blushed at the same time. “Lavender still brags.”

            “I…well…Well, y-yeah…but…” Ron stuttered as he remembered the time when he accidentally strayed away from their promised holy matrimony. He had screwed Lavender Brown, a fellow Gryffindor, when he got drunk on punch at Christmas party when they were in their 5th year. It was no secret that even though people knew them as The Old Married Couple and that they were engaged to each other, there were still pursuers who wanted to try their luck in getting them, and Lavender Brown was one of those ambitious ones. Hermione had her share of admirers, Viktor Krum and students from other houses included, but no one was more determined than Lavender in breaking off the engagement and having Ron for her own. Ron often called her The Squid because she clung onto him like one whenever they meet, regardless if they were at the presence of Hermione or not, and was always trying to steal a kiss from the redhead, in which Ron would practically beat her off with a stick, or to be more exact, with his wand. Finally, at 5th year when they were celebrating Christmas, Lavender had somehow discovered Ron’s lack of tolerance for alcohol and dared him to drink as much as he could. Ron, who hated backing out of dares, fell for it and the rest was history. It took quite long a while (with silent treatments and cold shoulders and hundreds and hundreds of desperate apologies from a very remorseful Ron in between) for Hermione to forgive him, but Lavender was not one to give up pursuing Ron and would taunt and jeer at Hermione, using their one night stand as salt to rub on old wounds.

            “What, was she better than me? Not being a virgin and all,” Hermione said icily, knowing very well how Lavender had been sleeping around before becoming obsessed with her redhead fiancé.

            “No, of course not! I don’t even remember doing her!” Ron replied hurriedly. “I was dead drunk! I said I was sorry…I know I should’ve been the perfect fiancée and all…”

            “Then do me. If you want to prove to me that you’re the perfect fiancée and that you want me to entirely forgive you, you must show me what it is like. Make me feel that I am not some naïve little girl who don’t even know about the birds and the bees.”

            “This is not some sort of contest, Mione. It’s your virginity we’re talking about here, not about who got the best rod in them and all.”

            “Very nice try of putting it, Ron, but I’m not entirely virgin, remember, thanks to the dildos?” Hermione grumbled sarcastically, putting her hands on her hips. “And it’s not about me winning over Lavender. It’s just…well…maybe a little of that, but the point is…I want to feel your love. We’re in 6th year now, and aside from all the silly little toys we used on each other, we’ve never really truly felt each other. Never really understood each other being as one. We’re going to get married once we’ve graduated from Hogwarts anyway, and I don’t want our first night to be a blundering one. Besides, I know you want it as much as I do. Don’t think I don’t know about you masturbating alone in the middle of the night in your dorm, especially when you don’t have the decency to cast a Silencing Charm around your bed sometimes. Some people are light sleepers, you know. They told me you whisper my name whenever you pleasure yourself. You’re just as desperate as I am.”

            Ron blushed crimson at the thought of people hearing him pumping himself and breathing his fiancée’s name over and over again in the dead of the night. He made a mental note to remember to _always_ cast the Silencing Charm the next time he felt like playing out his wet dreams.

            “So, will you take me or not? This room won’t clean itself, you know. You need all the help you can get.”

            “A…Are you sure about this?” Ron asked, still hesitant. “I sure as hell don’t know how to whip up a birth control potion, and I don’t want end up knocking you up like Draco did on himself…”

            “Whipping up a birth control potion would take forever, and we can’t exactly go down to Hogsmeade to get one,” Hermione said as she dug her pockets. “I know exactly what to do. I’ve been saving this like forever. It’s crude but 99.9 percent effective.”

            So saying, she held up a Muggle condom for her fiancé to see. Ron, who was born and bred a wizard, had never seen a Muggle condom before. He eyed at it curiously.

            “Wassat?”

            “A Muggle condom. Works just as well as birth control potions. Basically you slip it on your penis and it would act like a barrier to prevent semen from getting through.”

            “Ah well, OK,” Ron got the idea. “But you said 99.9 percent. What about the one percent?”

            “There is a slight risk that it might break, but really, Ron, is anything 100 percent safe these days?”

            “I guess not,” Ron sighed and shrugged. Since Hermione had gone through all that trouble getting it, she probably _was_ desperate. He’d been holding back for quite a long time anyway and it was about time he got it over and done with before he might actually attack his poor fiancée one of these days. He reached over to hold Hermione by the hips and asked solemnly, “Last chance. Are you sure?”

            “Yes I am. I have read all about it and I know what I’m up against. I mean, I used a toy, for goodness sake! How sure can I be?” Hermione scowled, seemingly firm about this.

            “OK,” Ron grinned all of a sudden. “You asked for it.”

            So saying, he threw away whatever he was doing, brandished his wand and made all of Hermione’s clothes slipped off her body with a flick and a spell, revealing her baby blues. It all happened so fast that Hermione wasn’t prepared to counter it.

            “HEY! A little warning next time! What if someone comes in?!” Hermione shouted, covering herself as best as she could. She would have been fine with just lifting her shirt, but this was way over the top.

            “You asked for it, so you’re gonna get it. ‘Sides, no one’s gonna come here. It’s after school hours.”

            With that, Ron carried Hermione onto one of the desks, pushing everything away in one swipe. Quickly, he attacked one of Hermione’s breasts with his hungry mouth. Hermione arched her back at the feeling of Ron’s wet and warm tongue over her nipples, breathing out Ron’s name. Ron chuckled inwardly as he pinched and rubbed her other nipple and massaged the breast at the same time with his free hand while still sucking on the former, making erotic noises, flicking the nipple with his tongue occasionally. The feeling sent jolts of pleasure through the girl’s spine and traveled down to her nether regions, making her moan despite herself. She could feel herself starting to get wet and she really wanted Ron to touch her down there. Reaching out with a trembling hand, she squeezed Ron’s hand that massaged her breast and breathed.

            “Ron, please…”

            Ron got the drift and let go of her breast to massage her clit the way he learnt to do so well when they were still in the ‘toy-playing’ stage. Hermione moaned her approval, grabbing hold of the table so as to not fall over. Wanting to hear more of his fiancée’s voice, the redhead massaged a little more vigorously, occasionally rubbing against the inner folds of her pussy while sucking her nipples in turns. Hermione threaded her fingers through his hair, feeling the pressure within her building, threatening to burst.

            “S…Stop…Stop, I’m gonna come…”

            “Come for me,” Ron whispered at her ear. “Give me all of your juice.”

            “N…No…I’m…gonna…I’m gonna…I’m coming…!!”

            Hermione let out a strangled yell as her back arched to an impossible angle, her body twitched and spasm-ed as she had her first orgasm of the moment. Ron had his free hand on the girl’s hip, holding her in place so that she wouldn’t slide off the desk as he felt her juices staining his hand. Once Hermione eased down from her tremors, Ron took his hand away and licked his fingers.

            “Mm, tasty,” Ron commented.

            “Please…In…In me…” Hermione begged, pulling Ron close.

            “My fingers in?” Ron teased as he thrust his fingers into her pussy and started finger-fucking her. “Or me?”

            “Yes, both, I don’t know,” Hermione muttered incoherently as she bit her finger, her moans getting louder at the pleasurable assault.

            “You have to be clear with me, or I’m only gonna do this to you,” Ron grinned mischievously, determined to make her say it out loud.

            “I’m trying,” Hermione whined, feeling herself flushed from head to toe. “This is my first time to go this far with a guy, so I don’t exactly know what to really say…”

            “Tell me clearly: Do you want my cock or you’d rather settle for my fingers?”

            “I…I want your penis…” Hermione replied, still stubborn about saying things in a proper, clinical way.

            “Then my cock it is,” Ron chuckled as he magicked his clothes away and got ready to go in with his man meat. He was about to put it in when Hermione stopped him.

            “The condom…” Hermione breathed, pointing at the floor where she dropped it.

            “Oh, right,” Ron lit up, remembering the most crucial thing. He picked up the condom and, with the help of his fiancée, put it on. It felt odd for him to have some sort of weird glove-like material on him, but if it was going to keep him from knocking his fiancée up before her time, it shouldn’t matter to him too much. He repositioned himself at her pussy and teased the folds with it.

            “Ready?”

            “Yes,” Hermione replied, holding onto his shoulders. “One hard thrust should do it.”

            With that, Ron lubricated his covered cock with her juice and entered with one thrust. Hermione bit her lip against the sudden pain, although it was not as bad as she thought it would be. The dildo had already broken her hymen the first time they experimented with it, so she didn’t have to worry about getting blood all over the place, but she was still surprised at this new sensation. Ron held still to let them both adjust and leaned down to kiss Hermione fully on the lips.

            “You are much bigger than the toy,” Hermione commented after kissing her fiancé long and hard.

            “Heh, thanks. You’re tighter than I thought,” Ron chuckled. “I’m gonna move now.”

            “Yes, please.”

            Ron started thrusting in a steady rhythm, making the girl moan again in ecstasy at the feeling of his rod going in and out of her, rubbing her inner walls. Unbeknownst to them, Harry was on his way to Severus’ office to hand the Potions Master some files Albus assigned him to and just so happen to walk past the lab. He could hear muffled voices and thought someone was in trouble, but when he peeked in, he blushed a huge red as he saw his best friends getting down and dirty on the potions lab desk. Hermione was cussing and demanding her fiancé to thrust harder, which was very surprising to both Ron and Harry because she never cursed. Not once. Ron, surprised at Hermione’s boldness, was instantly turned on and did as she requested. As he thrust harder, Hermione started thrust back against him. She grabbed one of her breasts and squashed it, playing with it while Ron leaned down to suck the other, keeping his rhythm. Against his better judgment, Harry continued watching, his little boyhood unexpectedly coming to life.

            Meanwhile, Severus, realizing that the redhead had not showed up for dinner, came down to check on him when he saw Harry outside the lab peeking in. Sneaking up on him quietly (a move he mastered back in his school years to keep himself from being noticed by the Marauders), he looked inside to see Ron and Hermione having sex in his potions lab. He would take point away from them later. He had to deal with Harry first.

            “Voyeurism is not a good habit to form, pet,” Severus whispered into Harry’s ear, taking the boy by surprise as he saw the shocked boy almost dropping the files he was carrying.

            “S-S-Severus…!” Harry stuttered in a low tone, trying not to be heard.

            “Yes, Harry?” Severus looked to see a tent in Harry’s pants. Grinning, he ran his hands down Harry’s sides. “What were you planning on doing with that?”

            “N-N-Nothing…”

            “Then why are you here?” Severus teased as he rubbed his hand over Harry’s stomach, but nowhere near that region. Inside, Ron lifts Hermione’s hips higher and pummeled into her, aiming her G-spot over and over again, with Hermione screaming for him to go even harder.

            “N-N-No, I’m not…” Harry moaned quietly at the lack of contact. In truth, he really wanted Severus to at least ghost his hand around his little erection. He really needed release right now.

            “Naughty boy,” Severus grinned, then breathed at the boy’s ear, whispering, “Do you like watching them?”

            “N-N-No…” Harry replied, ironically his eyes were still glued to the scene where Ron had flipped Hermione around to do her doggy-style. Hermione pushed her hair out of the way to look back at Ron. As soon as Ron reentered her, she bit her lip and put her head back down, enjoying the pleasurable assault done to her. Outside, Severus had slowly reached into Harry’s pants to stroke him.

            “You really should not lie, Harry.”

            Harry bit back a moan as he felt Severus’ hand on him. Severus chuckled in his ear seeing his reaction.

            “Why stop your moan? Don’t you want them to catch you?”

            Harry bit his lip harder until it bruised a little, shaking his head. There was no way he wanted them to catch him, especially his situation was just as embarrassing as they were. As Severus’ other hand pushed his pants down from the back, Ron was groaning, saying that he was coming close to his orgasm as he thrust harder and faster. Hermione forbid him, saying that she was almost there as well and wanted them to come together, even though she had already lost count as to how many times she had come before that. Severus licked his finger and ran it over Harry’s opening, making the boy let out a strangled gasp.

            “N-No, don’t…” Harry whispered hurriedly, his hand reaching out to stop him.

            “Why?” Severus purred, continuing to probe him.

            “It’s…It’s not nice…They’ll know I peeked…They’ll be angry with me,” Harry panted at the feeling of Severus’ hands on him. Severus could tell that despite his hand trying to stop him, he wasn’t really putting much effort into it.

            “Then don’t make a noise,” Severus whispered as he pushed the finger in just barely, moving in and out in rhythm with Ron’s thrusts into Hermione. Harry covered his mouth with his hand as Severus’ entered him, his other hand trying hard to hold on tight to the files he was given by Albus. They were lucky Ron was right; there was no one passing by the labs during after school hours, and not even the Prefects or Head Prefects would ever pass by there, especially when they knew that their Potions Master was there in his office and preferred his privacy above all else during after those hours, thus no one seeing this display: a Potions Master pressed against the little adopted grandson of Albus looking into the potions lab at two Gryffindors getting down and dirty.

            Ron tried to hold back his incoming orgasm, but kept on thrusting at the same pace to make Hermione come along with him. Hermione’s moan grew louder and longer as she could feel herself getting close. Gripping the sides of the desk, she allowed Ron to carry her legs up and wrapped it around his waist to find the perfect angle to hit the G-spot much better. Once he found it, he assaulted it over and over again, moving with a strength he didn’t know he had in him, pounding it relentlessly. Harry and Severus continued to watch, the latter sticking his finger deeper into the former, making the boy cringe and press his mouth even harder against his mouth to keep his moans from escaping. They kept at it until Hermione finally reached her pinnacle of heaven, screaming her orgasm so loudly, it would be a miracle if the whole school didn’t hear them. Ron followed after, letting his load into Hermione as the tightening of his fiancée’s pussy when she came made him lose his control. Both of them shuddered as their tremors subsided, Ron leaning against Hermione’s back as the latter panted on the table, her body slick with sweat. She normally wouldn’t be this sloppy, but after coming down from her high, she just couldn’t care less. After Ron had calmed down some, he pulled out, the condom bulging with his seed.

            “Phew, that was some trip,” Ron panted, his face strewn with bliss.

            “No wise cracks, Ron,” Hermione replied as she sat up. “You will need to take that condom off while you are still erect. Or else things would get messy.”

            “Oh, OK,” Ron obliged, removing the condom carefully, trying not to make a mess. While he discarded the condom by using a Disintegrating Spell, Hermione got down off the desk on shaky legs to get her clothes and started dressing. Ron also proceeded to dress as he reminded her, “We better hurry up with the cleaning. You promised to help me.”

            “Yes, yes,” Hermione replied hastily. “I may be ecstatic right now, but I’m not senile.”

            While that was going on, Severus had already pulled his hands away, standing up to prepare himself to barge inside the lab unannounced, in a way. Harry whined at the loss of contact but he knew they couldn’t do what they wanted to do in the middle of the corridor for everyone to see.

            “Up,” Severus said. Once Harry got up as he told him to, he pulled the boy against him, asking, “Do you feel that, Harry? Do you feel how much I want you?”

            Harry blushed wildly at the bulge pressing against him and nodded timidly. He was almost relieved that he was not the only one turned on by watching a live porn show.

            “Do you want that inside you?” Severus whispered.

            Harry nodded desperately, clinging onto Severus’ sleeves. Was he kidding? Of course he wanted that inside him. After that incident, he’d be happy to have anything in his ass.

            “Go to my room. Undress, and lay on the bed face down. I will be right there.”

            Harry nodded and made his way there, remembering to bring along the files he was supposed to bring to Severus in the first place. Severus waited for a few moments to give his little beloved a head-start and also until he saw Hermione and Ron finished dressing. Once they started working on cleaning the lab, Severus took that as a cue to go inside.

            “Mister Weasley, I do not recall allowing you to have any assistance in completing your punishment duties.”

            Ron was shocked at Severus’ sudden appearance. He seemed stern and looking as if he was going to give him a lifetime’s detention or something.

            “P-P-Prof. Snape, I can explain…”

            “It’s my fault,” Hermione said, stepping forward. “I offered to help. It’s just too much for one person to do…”

            “Judging by the time right now, I suppose your argument is justifiable,” Severus said as he looked around the still messy area. “Ten points from Gryffindor, Mister Weasley, for requesting assistance without permission. Carry on, but hurry up before Filch locks you in here.”

            With that, Severus turned wordlessly and walked out of the room, leaving The Old Married Couple a little dumbfounded.

            “That was…surprising,” Ron commented. “He took away points but still he let you help me. What was that about?”

            “I dunno,” Hermione shrugged. “But isn’t that a good thing? You might actually make it to have a late dinner, or early supper in this case, after this. Maybe we could…” she blushed at this, “…have another round in my dorm, if you’re still up to it.”

            “Well,” Ron grinned as he wrapped his arm around his fiancée’s waist from behind. “That will have to depend on how many of those…condoms you have with you.”

            Hermione giggled and pushed Ron away playfully, urging him to finish up. It was going to be a very interesting thing to look forward to tonight.


	50. Chapter 50

            While Severus was on his way to his dorm after reprimanding The Old Married Couple, Harry was all set on the bed like Severus asked, waiting anxiously. All naked and lying face down on the bed, Harry wondered in excited anticipation as to what his beloved had in store for him tonight. Severus came in a few moments later, much to Harry’s delight, after going to his office to get a special lube. He closed the door and admired the form that was Harry lying on his bed.

            “You are quite beautiful, did you know that, pet?” Severus said with a satisfied smile.

            “Don’t say that,” Harry blushed as he pouted, not looking at his beloved directly. “I’m not.”

            “Oh yes, you are. You have no idea how beautiful you are right now.”

            “How can I be beautiful? I’m small, and short, and thin as hell, and almost pale, and…”

            “You’re lithe, and beautifully pale, like pure snow,” Severus stopped whatever negative words Harry wanted to say about himself, “And you are all mine,” he dropped the lube on the bed and ran his hand down Harry’s back, “All mine.”

            “Yes, I’m all yours, Severus. Make me belong to you again,” Harry moaned as he shivered at Severus’ touch, enjoying the feeling.

            “I will,” Severus said, leaning down to kiss Harry’s back, “I most certainly will.”

            Taking the jar of lube, he removed the lid and coated his two fingers generously with the content. Slowly, after spreading some of the lube around the boy’s puckered opening, he pushed one in, making the boy gasp and arch to meet his fingers.

            “Don’t move, Harry,” Severus said huskily, “let me control everything.”

            Harry nodded and let Severus have his way with him. This time, he was really going to let Severus take control. No more interruptions or distractions from him. Only total submission.

            “Reach back and spread yourself apart,” Severus said as he pushed the other finger in.

            Harry did so, his hands snaked over to part his cheeks, making more room in his entrance. Severus plunged his fingers in, twisting them, finding that little nub that made his little love see stars. Harry shivered and let out a moan, feeling his sweet spot being brushed slightly, wanting the older man to press against it even deeper, to make him feel the rush of euphoria, but at that very moment, Severus pulled his fingers out and got up.

            “How does that feel, pet?” Severus asked as he started undressing.

            “Good…but empty…” Harry replied in a disappointed tone. “I want you…”

            “A little later, pet,” Severus coaxed as he pulled a box from his dresser. “I have been saving this.”

            Harry looked back to see Severus bringing the box over. When he opened it up, it was a dildo that had little bumps on it and a few ridges around the edges. Harry backed away in fear.

            “What…? No, I don’t like toys…”

            “Why not?” Severus asked. “You would look so beautiful. Think, I can fuck you as I suck you.”

            “But…But I want you…” Harry whined in protest.

            “And you _will_ have me, a bit later.”

            “You…You don’t understand, Severus…” Harry looked at the toy warily. “In the business, I…”

            “Am I anything like the people in the business?” Severus asked, his face strewn with concern.

            “No!” Harry shook his head immediately. “Of course not!”

            “Have I ever hurt you on purpose?”

            “No. Never.”

            “Then do you trust me?”

            “Y-Yes, I trust you…”

            “Then don’t worry about anything. Don’t think of anything that has to do with the business. That was your old nightmare. Nightmares are meant to be forgotten, and I can help you forget, if only you would let me.”

            Harry looked from the dildo to Severus and back again. He did remember his vow to let Severus take control, and so far everything that Severus had done to him was nothing short than a wonder. If he promised he would help him forget his past bad experiences with toys, he would definitely deliver. Harry lowered his head and nodded.

            “Good. Now turn over on your back and pull your legs up to your chest.”

            Harry nodded and did so. From his position on all fours, he turned around to missionary position and hugged his knees against his chest, revealing his entrance towards Severus. Severus lubed the toy up good so that it wouldn’t hurt his little beloved. He pushed the toy in slowly, kissing Harry’s leg to calm him down. Harry winced as he felt the toy entering him, trying not to think of his past with toys like these. There was a slight burn when he was entered, but the lube eased it in, making the burn disappeared as quickly as it came. Severus pushed it all the way in and stopped to admire him in that position.

            “I like this, love. It was worth the trip to Knockturn Alley and worth paying 250 Sickles for this,” Severus grinned. “You look so beautiful.”

            So saying, he tapped the toy with his wand once and it started humming as it vibrated, twice and it started moving slowly. Harry gasped at the feeling of the dildo moving, his back arched up a little.

            “I bet you have never felt that,” Severus said as he moved to sit between Harry’s legs. “Pinch your nipples for me.”

            Harry did as he was told, moaning as his fingers captured his nipples, stroking and rubbing in earnest. Severus was right; he never felt that before. Back then, the toy was always shoved roughly into him and always when he wasn’t prepared, sometimes even without lube. And instead of letting the toy do what it naturally did, the people training him always pump and thrust the toy deep into him, fucking his ass raw until he didn’t know whether he was supposed to be trained by the toy or by the trainer. This, on the other hand, felt rather good as the toy vibrated and moved in circles within him, assaulting his insides gently and sending pleasurable jolts through his spine, bringing his little manhood to life.

            “You’re all flushed now, no longer pale,” Severus leaned up kissing him softly, in which Harry moaned in the kiss as he continued to pinch himself. Grinning inwardly, he leaned back from the kiss and whispered at Harry’s ear, “Now reach down and stroke yourself.”

            Without warning, he tapped the toy twice again and it started moving faster. Harry gasped out loud as he tried to do as he was told, his back arched up again even higher.

            “So beautiful and so obedient,” Severus moved back and leaned over Harry’s cock. “I want you to fuck my mouth.”

            Slowly, Severus took Harry’s head of the cock between his lips, slowly licking it and tracing circles around it. Harry sucked in a breath as Severus took his length, slowly did as he was told while enjoying the wet heat. It had been quite a while since he was asked to fuck anything. The only time he’d ever actually fucked anyone was the missus and the daughter of his 4th Master. As he moved his hips, thrusting at a moderate rhythm into Severus’ mouth, the older man tapped the toy again, making it go faster, resulting in the boy letting out a surprised strangled yelp as he felt the toy assaulting his sweet spot relentlessly and began to fuck Severus a little faster n deeper. He wanted to taste Harry before he took him.

            Showing he could take him all, he sucked as he came back up and licked the underside. The sensation was too much for the boy. The pit of his stomach just tightened all of a sudden from Severus’ lick on his underside and he came violently. Severus drank him down till the very last drop before he pulled off. He tapped the toy three times and it came to a halt and the humming stopped, leaving Harry panted heavily, his body still twitching a little as the tremors slowly subsided.

            “Perfect,” Severus whispered as he watched Harry lay back down onto the bed after arching in that such impossible angle from his orgasm.

            Harry’s hips seemed to somehow gyrate by itself, wanting more than just the dildo up his ass. Severus’ cock was aching hard as he watched that seductive display while he slowly pulled the dildo out and over to the side. It was definitely worth the trip and the money for all this. They will have to try doing this again next time.

            “Do you think you are ready now?”

            Harry nodded desperately before breathing out his words, “Please…Severus…Put your cock in me…I wanna feel you inside…”

            “How bad do you want it?” the older man smirked, pressing his cock to Harry’s opening, but didn’t push it in. Harry whined impatiently as he moved his hips to try and push the thick member into him, in which Severus held back just right not to let him.

            “I want you so bad…I want you to fill me up…and fuck me until I can’t remember my name…”

            “Well, I want it too. Up on your knees, pet.”

            Despite his drained body from the massive orgasm he had before, Harry obeyed. Getting off from his missionary position, he went on all fours, sticking his ass up towards Severus again, wishing he could hurry up and enter his empty orifice. Severus soon sat up and moved closer.

            “I want you to stay on your hands and knees, and when you no longer can, sit up and lean against me, understand?”

            “Yes, my Master.”

            “Say that again,” Severus smirked, licking the boy’s earlobe.

            “Yes, my _Master_ ,” Harry repeated again, emphasizing the word ‘Master’ in an erotic tone.

            Severus let out a satisfied smile. Very slowly and deliberately, he thrust into Harry’s entrance, forcing a strangled gasp out of the boy’s lips as he slowly filled him up. Harry gripped the bed sheets tight, begging to gods of all religion to not let this blissful feeling end too quickly. Severus seated himself comfortably inside Harry. As much as he wanted to start fucking the boy with all his might, he didn’t want to hurt Harry. As always, he wanted their first coupling in a long time to be pleasurable to both parties, and taking it nice and slow seemed to be the best way of doing it, but Harry had other ideas and needs for their coupling. He thrust his hips against Severus to make the older man move a little bit faster.

            “Please, Master…”

            “In due time, pet,” Severus said as he ran his hand down Harry’s back. “I will not have our first time in such a long while resulting in any pain on your side.”

            Harry nodded and tried to follow Severus’ pace, although his cock started coming back to life again after Severus started thrusting in and out of him a few good times, while the older man groaned at the tight feeling surrounding his man meat. The boy moaned and whined for him to go faster; he was almost there, almost hitting the spot. He wanted to see those searing hot white flashes in his mind’s eye, to feel the sensation that drove him crazy every time the Potions Master rammed him with his rod. After what felt like forever, Severus finally shifted to hit the spot, making the boy gasp from it.

            “You have been a very naughty boy, Harry,” Severus said as he deliberately moved slowly out, then plunged in to hit it with just the right force.

            “Yes…Yes…I’m a naughty boy…” Harry whined, getting into the role-play.

            “Naughty boys need to be punished,” Severus growled teasingly, reaching around to pinch his beloved’s nipple.

            “Yes…! Yes…!” Harry let out a moan at the feeling. “Please punish me, Master…!”

            Severus grinned and stilled, no longer continuing his thrusting. Harry was surprised at the sudden halt and turned to look at Severus worriedly.

            “M…Master…? Did I say something wrong…?”

            “No, pet,” Severus replied as he ran his hands down Harry’s sides. “But you are being punished. You must do all the work.”

            “But…But…I didn’t mean to peek…” Harry, after clearing his mind some, knew exactly what he was punished for.

            “I know you didn’t, but you still carried on with it anyway, and that’s being naughty,” Severus chuckled. He tugged Harry back on him, saying, “Come on, pet. Make a move on. He’s getting cold.”

            Harry pouted for a while, then started to bob his ass in and out of the length, trying to aim for the spot. He expertly clenched and unclenched his inner muscles to maximize his lover’s pleasure, just like he was trained to do back in the business and when he was with his 2nd Master. He was often praised for that and hoped that it would work to his advantage now.

            “Mmm, very good, pet,” Severus moaned above him, continuing to pinch and rub the boy’s nipples as he felt his butt cheeks slapping against his hips, his cock hitting closer and closer towards the soft little nub that would make his pet go wild. Licking a stray salty sweat that trickled down the boy’s back, he whispered, “Faster. Move harder on me.”

            Harry obeyed, letting out a moan of ecstasy after the sweet spot was found again. He assaulted it over and over again with a passionate vengeance, loving the feeling despite the fact that it was punishment for him to do all the work. It worked both ways too as it was punishment for the Potions Master as well. He fought against the yearning to fuck Harry because he knew he was going to lose control sooner than he wished. Just a bit longer and he would bring them both to completion. In the end, it was still too much for Harry to bear as he gave him a pleading look while he continued to move, trying to go faster as requested.

            “Please, Master…” Harry moaned. “I can’t stand it…Please…Fuck me…!”

            Throwing whatever slow and steady plan he had in mind out of the window, Severus grabbed his hips, thrusting deep and hard.

            “Mmh…So good…” Severus breathed out.

            “Yes…! Yes…! Yes…!!” Harry screamed as he reached down and masturbated himself. “I’m gonna come again…!!”

            “Hands on the bed,” Severus ordered, pulling Harry’s hand from his cock. “You will come by my cock only.”

            Harry whined in protest but did as he was told, putting his hands back down where they belonged and letting them grip on the bed sheets for support. He was so close to exploding, so close to letting out everything within him just spill all over the bed. Severus moved faster and faster aligned with his moans that were getting louder, quicker and shorter, his own orgasm getting closer. Every thrust and every hit on his sweet spot made the pressure in the pit of his stomach stronger than it could ever be, threatening to burst as Harry screamed in ecstasy and pleasure at the delightful assault thrown on him.

            “Come for me, pet. Come whenever you feel like it. Scream your pleasure.”

            One more hit on his sweet spot made him lose control. It forced an explosion equivalent to a detonation of an atomic bomb within Harry as the boy came all over himself and all over the bed sheet, making the boy scream his lover’s name in completion. His muscles squeezed down impossibly hard on Severus’ already rock hard cock, making him come and bathing Harry’s insides. As he felt himself being filled to the brim, Harry’s orgasm actually lasted a little longer than the previous one, his body twitching as if he was almost having some sort of seizure. He literally dropped onto the bed as the last of his tremors died down. He didn’t care whether he was in a sticky mess or not. He wanted Severus’ warmth. Leaning and tilting his head up, he kissed Severus who was panting and leaning over him, the older man’s arms around him telling him that he would like to spend a little time cuddling. Severus kissed him back slowly before pulling and lying down next to him and instinctively, Harry cuddled next to him.

            “You are perfect, Harry. Perfect in every way conceivable,” Severus whispered to his ear.

            “Am I really…?” Harry asked skeptically. He was not used to compliments, especially not this.

            “Absolutely, my pet,” Severus smirked and kissed his neck. “Absolutely.”

            “I love you so much, Severus.”

            “And I love you too, pet.”

\--:--

            A dark silhouette of a tall man stood before the Muggle family he had just mutilated. He admired his handiwork, surprised that he could actually do it after so long out of practice. The fat man’s body was in pieces, and he made sure that every single ounce of fat in his obese body was literally splattered all over the floor, including the ones that clung desperately on his love handles and his innards. Never before had the man seen anyone who could still keep such a gluttonous figure in spite of the disheveled home that would probably be unable to contain even a day’s worth of bread to eat. The thin, lanky woman, on the other hand, had her body and limbs twisted in such a way that would put a yoga master or a twister game expert to shame. She definitely could use some of the unnecessary fat that her husband didn’t really need.

            Of course, nothing was more satisfying than killing their little porky son. He had given him a very slow, torturous death, forcing his body and mind using the Imperius Curse to stay focus and alive as he made him take a kitchen knife—the ones Muggles used for chopping up meat—to slowly cut himself bit by bit. He made him watch as piece by piece of his flesh fall onto the floor and made him carry on some more until he was only left with one hand that held that knife before telling him slit his throat real slow so that he would bleed but not really die immediately from blood loss. All the while as he squatted there on the floor, watching the boy waiting for death to claim him in his blank mind-controlled state, he released his Imperius Curse hold on him and watched him go from consciousness to confusion to realization then to screaming pain, all the while the man was laughing at him and shouting “ _Sectumsempra!_ ” over and over again at the boy, causing his body to spout blood everywhere like a multi-fountain until he died by just the pain alone. Using the tip of his wand to dip a generous amount of blood and licking it clean, he gave each and every one of those bodies a bored look.

            “Muggles. So fragile. So vulnerable. So mortal. It’s almost a waste to kill them.”

            “Master Riddle, I’ve got some nice trophies for you to collect. I found them in the Muggles’ storeroom.”

            The man called Riddle turned around to see the fat, stout man with unkempt hair coming to him with a box levitated towards him. Using a counter-spell, he made the man drop the box on the floor, its content scattered all over the floor within its proximity.

            “Your taste of trophies and mine are like trying to compare Heaven and Earth, Wormtail,” Riddle commented sarcastically. “Still, let’s see what you got.”

            “Oh, oh, Master Riddle, you may like this very much,” the stout man he called Wormtail went on his hands and knees and went through the dropped items to find what he thought was worthy of his Master’s eyes. “Yes, yes, you will like this. Very, very much.”

            Riddle stood there, watching the fidgety little man go on the floor searching like a rat would for food, waiting impatiently for his imbecile of a slave get him what he thought he wanted. Moments later, Wormtail found what he was looking for and handed it to his Master. Snatching it from Wormtail’s hand, he noticed that they were two pieces of photographs. One was a picture of a dark-haired man with glasses and a red-haired woman carrying a baby boy with striking jade-green eyes—obviously taken using Muggle cameras, since the picture was not animated—and the other was a picture of that jade-green eyed boy standing there timidly as he was forced by the fat man he just killed to stand still. The only difference was that in the latter picture, aside from it being taken by wizard cameras, was that the boy in the picture looked almost 11 years old, coming to 12.

            “See the connection, Master?” Wormtail asked gleefully, anticipating his Master’s reaction.

            Riddle growled as he gripped on both pictures tightly with a vengeance.

            “The boy is alive.”


	51. Chapter 51

            The room was silent as the lovers did their thing: Remus reading some books on childcare he got from a very dark, dusty section of Sirius’ library and Draco working on his potions homework. Because of him carrying twins, he started to show much earlier than expected, so Severus decided that it was time for him to start studying at home. Albus, as promised, brought the private tutor and every day, at 10:30 am sharp, she would show up at the door and gave special private lessons to Draco on his schoolwork, with Remus waiting hand and foot for them.

            It turned out that his private tutor was no other than Aurora Sinistra, Hogwarts’ Astronomy professor. Apparently she was a rare kind, probably one in a million, among all the wizards and witches geniuses ever existed in the history. She was what Muggles would call her an ‘all-rounder’, in which she can learn something as easily as pie and master it within days when it takes months for an average wizard/witch to do so. Basically, you just need to toss her a book on any subject, let her read through it for a day or two and put it to practice for another day or two, and she would be an expert in it. In fact, she could more or less be at the same level with Severus Snape when it comes to potions. If she were to be compared IQ with Hermione Granger, she would’ve been about intellectually 10 times higher than the little ‘insufferable Know-It-All” as Severus would put her. If it weren’t for the fact that Prof. Sinistra insisted that she kept a low profile and insisted that she taught her first love subject, which was Astronomy, she would’ve been serving in the Ministry as one of the highest position in the Aurors’ Department as a Pretender, which was a high ops undercover agent who could only be taken by the most versatile and intellectually flexible of agents.

            As Draco tried to match the equations of the ingredients of the potion he learnt that afternoon, he remembered the first day Prof. Sinistra came in and claimed to be his private tutor. He was flabbergasted that she knew everything there is in the Hogwarts school syllabus and knew every single theory and thesis of any subject she was thrown at when Draco was skeptical about her teaching skills and wanted to test her out. Prof. Sinistra revealed to him that Albus chose her to be his private tutor not only because she was an all-rounder, but also she had the experience in the past of teaching youngsters who accidentally got knocked up because, as she put it, “they couldn’t keep their legs closed”. Her mother was also an experienced teacher to young mothers both male and female and also worked part-time in St. Mungo’s as a midwife, so basically Prof. Sinistra grew up in an environment where babies were abundant and innocent mistakes made by teenagers before their time was very common to her. She had nothing against Draco of having a forbidden pregnancy though. On the contrary, she was actually thrilled and proud that Draco had taken the bold step of accepting his pregnancy rather than choosing the irresponsible way of getting an abortion.

            _It’s about time the Ministry stop being such a bias racial fool and start looking at the big picture,_ Draco smiled to himself as he remembered her saying to him when Draco asked her why wasn’t she upset about him having a werewolf’s child. _A child, regardless the species, is still a child. And they have every right to have a chance to live in this world._

He was about to dip his quill to continue writing his essay when he suddenly felt something.

            “Um…Remy?”

            “Something wrong, love?” Remus looked up quickly at Draco’s call, his face showing concern.

            “I felt somethi—there it is again,” Draco sat up and put his hand on his tummy, his words cut short when the feeling came back again.

            “What is it? Are the cubs al…” Remus quickly put his hand on his lover’s belly and his words stopped short as well as he felt what his lover felt. “Oh Merlin…W…Was that…Was that a kick…?”

            “That or the babies are giving me indigestion,” Draco joked half-heartedly while trying to feel for the kick, but it didn’t happen again.

            “Now that was interesting,” Remus said as he grinned at Draco’s disappointed pout at the babies stop kicking. “Seems like they wanna tell us they’re here.”

            “Yes, they seem like they want to be here with us,” Draco smiled, then took a breath and sighed, “Remus, I don’t know…I’m scared. I’m afraid of what might happen to the pregnancy, to the birth…what if something rubs off the wrong way, and something goes wrong…I don’t think I can handle that if it happens…”

            “It’s alright, Drake,” Remus reached up and hugged him. “I know it’s a tough road ahead, but trust me, everything’s gonna be alright. I’m with you now. You’re not alone in this.”

            “But our children will never be accepted,” Draco started to sob. Remus could tell it was one of the mood swings Paprika spoke of and held him close, helping him to ride it out. “They will be bastards and laughed at.”

            “I will not allow it. If they’re gonna hurt our babies, they will answer to me.”

            “But you’re just a slave,” Draco noted, then it hit him. “I can never free you.”

            “Why not? I thought Master Snape said your father had handed his ownership of me over to you.”

            “Yes, but I want you to be free. I don’t want you to get taken away like Harry did. I can’t live without you. But I know that’s exactly what they’re gonna do. Once the Ministry gets wind of our illicit relationship and the spawns I’m carrying, which I assume it might happen sooner or later if Sirius decided to rat us out, they will separate us for sure and force me to abort the children…or worse, kill them as soon as they’re born, since my pregnancy has already gone this far.”

            “They won’t take me away. I swore I will never leave you, remember? They will have to risk being turned to separate us, and I know for sure that’s the last thing they’d want happen to them. I’ll gladly infect them if that’s what it takes to keep their hands off you and me. I know you can do this. Besides, didn’t we agree to go for that trip to get the payment of my freedom together?”

            “But the children…what would happen to them? I will not have them going to my parents when we are away on the trip,” Draco said in worry. “Heaven forbid what they’ll do to them.”

            “They won’t. I will not allow it,” Remus replied determinedly. “I’m sure Master Snape would help out, or maybe even that Aunt Tonks of yours. Didn’t she volunteer to be our cubs’ godmother? And there’s always Paprika. I have you know she would be a very good babysitter, even a substitute mother for our cubs.”

            “She…She is…?” Draco looked at him in surprise.

            “Remember when you were in such a wreck, she mentioned something about you carrying life, unlike her?” Remus asked. When Draco thought back a little before he nodded in reply, he continued, “Well, when I asked her about it yesterday when I was making tea for you and Prof. Sinistra, she told me that she used to get knocked up with Master Black’s child. Twice, in fact.”

            “Sh…She did…?!” Draco’s eyes widened in shock at the news.

            “Yes,” Remus nodded, then continued, “She said that before she was in the slave business, she grew up in a family of many siblings, her being the eldest to take care of all of them, thus the experience. Apparently despite the fact that they were already poor enough as it is, her parents had no sense of birth control whatsoever. When the amount of children got too much for them to handle, they were sold to childless families while she was sold to the business. She was bought by Master Black at the auction and during her first days working here, she was Master Black’s favourite for a while. She was always his target to fulfill Master Black’s sexual fantasies and met his every perverted whim and fancy. Whatever creative ways of expressing his libido, he had her to do his bidding. She was quite young, almost a few years older than your current age at that time, and she got confused with Master Black’s need for her as him being genuinely interested in her romantically. When their usual sex games got a little frisky and she got pregnant with Master Black’s child, she was totally disappointed that Master Black met with that news nonchalantly and ordered her to have an abortion.

            “She refused, of course, and Master Black beat her so badly she had a miscarriage. Same thing happened as well the second time around, but she knew then that Master Black would not approve of her running away from him and raising the child alone, so she approached him, told him she was pregnant again and personally handed him the beating rod he often used whenever he was drunk and in a bad mood and go around punishing people, totally resigned to her fate as Master Black told her to lie down on the floor and let him beat her belly until she lost the child. Since then, Master Black no longer needed her as his sex toy and made her into a personal slave, probably a little afraid that he might knock her up and end becoming a child-killer again, but that didn’t stop him from making her wear those ridiculously scandalous outfits. Surprisingly, when I asked why she continues to put up with this even though she knew it was degrading even for a slave, she just smiled at me with tears in her eyes and said, ‘Even though I know Master Black would never love me back, I will still love him’.”

            “Oh Merlin…I…I never thought…” Draco cupped his mouth with his hands. “But…how…? How could she love a lowlife like him? How could she allow Sirius to do the things he did to her and still love him…?”

            “Maybe because she knew that deep down inside, Master Black does have a sort of attachment to her.”

            “How so?”

            “Did you know that throughout Master Black’s lifetime since he started getting into the slave trend as his forefathers did, he had roughly about 10 new slaves that comes and goes every quarter yearly?”

            “That goes without question,” Draco rolled his eyes, remembering Lucius complaining to his wife over dinner about Sirius overdoing it with the slave turnover in the house.

            “Well, Paprika was taken in roughly 5 years ago, and all the hired help confirmed that she was the first and only slave who continued to remain in the Black household for such long period of time till today while the rest of her colleagues that came in with her were soon gone 3 months after he was done with them. And after the two miscarriages, Sirius had not once considered letting her go, saying things like ‘She belonged to him’ or ‘She cost him a fortune to buy’ or ‘I’ll let you go whenever I feel like it’, things like that. Does that not show Master Black’s possibility of having a soft spot for her?”

            “Now that you put it…I guess he does. Hah, shocking. One of the Black family members actually capable of love. My parents would have a field day with this news.”

            “Her love for Master Black is just like my love for you, Drake: undying and unconditional,” Remus kissed Draco’s forehead, “and I promise you, once you get the payment for my freedom, I will take you as my ‘wife’.”

            “I just don’t see how that can happen,” Draco replied, still skeptical. “I mean, Uncle Sev almost got himself killed trying to get Harry’s payment for freedom. What are the odds of us surviving the journey and the ordeal getting your payment of freedom, especially when you’re their best bread-winner and their veteran slave? And our babies, I don’t want them to be bastard orphans if we don’t make it back alive.”

            “They are not bastards. Please don’t say that, Drake,” Remus said sternly as he touched foreheads with the younger blonde. “They are our children. Regardless if they are born out of wedlock or not, they are still our children. Would you rather view them that way or would you rather think that they are bastards?”

            “I just don’t want them to be called that,” Draco sniffed sadly. “I would never call them that.”

            “They will never be called that. I will make sure of it. I will make sure that both you and I will come out of this alive and be reunited with our children once our mission is done. I will marry you as soon as you get the payment for my freedom and they will never have to worry about that,” Remus whispered, hugging and kissing Draco softly, in which the latter kissed back.

            “But that is so far away.”

            “Time will pass by very fast, Drake, you’ll see. Sorry I don’t have a ring and all, but will you marry me when that time comes?”

            “Do you even have to ask?” Draco smiled. “Yes, yes, I will marry you, and I don’t care even if you give me a ring made out of woven daisies.”

            “I’m glad,” Remus smiled and kissed Draco’s forehead. “I love you very, very much. You and our cubs. You know that, right?”

            “I know,” Draco replied, then looked down at his slightly protruding stomach. “Should we think of names?”

            “Sure. What do you have in mind?”

            “I don’t know,” Draco shrugged. “That’s why I asked you.”

            “Hmm…” Remus tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Well, I have been thinking that if we get two boys, I might named them Alexi and Aloysius. They were the names of my forefathers who were the first Lupins in the family.”

            “I thought of one name. Abigail. It means ‘Joy of a Father’.”

            “Abigail? That’s a nice name. You think one of the twins would be a girl?”

            “I’m kinda hoping that way,” Draco smiled. “A girl that looks like her father.”

            “You never cease to surprise me, Drake,” Remus chuckled. “I’ve always assumed you might the first person to suggest that the babies should be boys. But what if the twins are both girls? What would you like the other one to be named?”

            “I…don’t know. I guess we need to think about other names then.”

            “How about…Amrita?”

            “That is pretty. What about Ambra?”

            “Ambra? Sounds…odd. What does that mean?”

            “It means amber in Italian, to honour the colour of your eyes. You do realize that when you’re not in your golden eye bestial mode, your eyes are actually amber in colour?”

            “Do I? Oh, OK. I guess it’s alright. I’m also thinking between the lines of Alexandra and Amarinth.”

            “I like Alexandra, or even Alexandria.”

            “You know, we can go on forever with this, but we wouldn’t know till our cubs are born.”

            “Yes. I hope that is the longest way off.”

            “Well, you wouldn’t want to carry the weight around you forever, right, especially when it’s twins we’re talking about? It’ll hurt your back,” Remus chuckled, “and your balls because I won’t be able to do this to you,” he tickled Draco’s nipple and then pulled away teasingly as he spoke.

            “Remus Lupin~!” Draco frowned, a blush on his face as he closed his eyes briefly by the sensation of the half-wolf’s tickling on his nipple. “No teasing.”

            “Alright, I won’t,” Remus chuckled again, then pulled Draco close. “I think it’s about time you get your head out of those books and pay attention to more important things, like going to bed. Adequate rest is best for the babies.”

            So saying, before even giving the blonde a chance to protest, Remus picked Draco bridal style off the chair and carried him to bed. As the blonde toed off his shoes and let them carelessly fall onto the carpeted floor while his distance between the bed shortened, Draco nibbled his lip, a habit he developed when he wanted to say something but afraid of the person’s reaction. Finally he decided to get it off his chest.

            “Can I be selfish and ask you something, Remy?”

            “Yes?” Remus responded as he put him onto the bed.

            “If you think it would not hurt the babies, maybe you could…suck me?”

            “Why the sudden notion?” Remus raised an amused brow.

            “You’re the one who started it, and I haven’t had a decent release in…like, forever ago?” Draco huffed, a blush across his face.

            “Alright, but don’t blame me for unable to wake up tomorrow morning for Prof. Sinistra’s class because you want to sleep in after getting this good.”

            “Please, Remus?” Draco begged, his eyes looking pleadingly at him, making the older man smile.

            “Anything for you, my little Master.”

            With that, he crawled down until he was facing Draco’s crotch. Draco grabbed the bed sheets in anticipation as the half-wolf’s hands reached to the waistband, slowly removing the pants off the blonde, together with his underwear. He could see that his little Master was already half hard, thanks to the initial nipple-teasing.

            “Please hurry…” Draco breathed, licking his lips.

            “Patience, Drake,” Remus said as his tongue started flicking at the head of the cock, teasing it and making the boy squirm.

            “I…ah…ain’t got…ah…any…”

            “Then get started.”

            Chuckling, Remus put the head of the cock between his puckered lips, sucking lightly at it. Draco groaned “Ah, fun” in sarcasm and tried to move his cock up to his mouth, thrusting in, but the older man quickly held down his hips to the bed so that he wouldn’t move.

            “You asked me to do this, so stay still,” Remus grinned naughtily, reducing Draco into a begging, whining mess. After being able to make his little Master grovel for it, he took the boy’s cock whole, surprising him by sucking him hard. Draco gasped, tilting his head back as he widened his eyes in pleasure.

            “Oh fuck, yes!!” Draco screamed, clawing at the bed, as Remus sucked and bobbed his head on Draco’s cock, blowing him expertly, his tongue lashing out in random patterns while making those wild suctions that drove the blonde insane. Draco screamed his approval again, moving one hand to Remus’ head and ran his fingers through his hair, while the half-wolf licked as he sucked, one free hand snaking down to massage the balls. He pulled out occasionally to run his tongue along the cock before putting it back in again, blowing him and humming as he did. The vibration from Remus’ humming soon did the boy in.

            “Re-Re-Rem…Remy…!!” Draco arched as he came.

            Remus quickly held down his hips, drinking every drop of his cum that he had missed so much since their last coupling together. As Draco had not come for quite a long time, he barely recognize the massive release he let off into Remus’ mouth as he twitched and spasm-ed a little from the orgasmic tremors. Remus swallowed every drop like drinking nectar from the heavenly flowers of the gods, not wanting to waste anything. It felt as if the ceiling came down on him when Draco finally recovered, lying back down and panting, his eyes closed again.

            Once Remus had his fill, he pulled out and wiped his mouth, reached down to kiss Draco’s forehead as he helped him put on his pants.

            “Sleep tight, Drake,” Remus whispered, then kissed Draco’s belly as well, whispering to the babies inside, “you too, cubs.”

            Draco nodded before rolling over and falling asleep. Remus pulled the blanket over Draco and helped him to clear his books before returning back to the bed, hugging him close as he too fell asleep with him. Draco snuggled into the warmth when Remus returned to the bed and nuzzled at the crook of the older man’s neck, in which the older man kissed his forehead again and returned to slumber.

            Such is a sight to behold.

\--:--

            “I don’t know anything! I swear I don’t know anything!”

            Riddle glared coldly at the pleading lady who was holding her dead mutilated son miserably, pleading for him to let her live. With a flick of a wand, he made her levitate in the air and with another flick of a wand, tore all her clothes off, leaving her bare to be kissed by the biting winter cold. Riddle came up to her and ran his tongue on her cleavage before taking her chin.

            “Come, come now, Greta. He is still family, after all. Are you sure you never had any sort of contact with him? What kind of cousin are you?”

            “I swear!” the lady he called Greta cried. “James and I were never really that close! We are almost 5 times removed! The last time I’ve ever seen him was during his graduation party at his home where he announced his engagement with Lily! I swear I never knew he had a son! Please, I have nothing to do with this! Please let me go!”

            “Oh, I will let you go, alright,” Riddle said as he licked the tip of his wand. “I’ll let you go with a bang, most definitely I will.”

            With a shout of a spell, the lady exploded in a split second, spraying every miniscule body part of her everywhere. Riddle closed his eyes and held his hand out, allowing the blood to spray on himself like as if he was some regular guy enjoying the falling of rain on a midsummer’s day. He exhaled and ran the wet metallic-smelling blood through his hand, smearing it all over his face while licking those that dribbling past the corner of his lips.

            “Excellent, Master. Another job well done,” Wormtail, who was a few feet away from him, took out a dirty papyrus from his inner robes and used his wand to strike off a name off the branch of a drawing of a tree. He didn’t enjoy as much of the bloodlust as his Master, but he definitely enjoyed striking off names from the family tree created from the lineage potion his Master made, like he was a very important secretary of sorts.

            Riddle opened his eyes and fished out the picture he had gotten from Wormtail from the Muggle family he killed. The little boy looking upward at the fat man uncertainly before staring at the camera with fear, his clothes about 3 sizes bigger and his hair messier than a bad hair day, and his eyes the striking jade green that etched deep within Riddle’s vengeful heart.

            “Soon, little boy. I will get you…soon…”


	52. Chapter 52

            Today was not like the ordinary days. Today Albus was serious. He rarely showed a serious face, always in his grandfatherly mode, unless there have been certain dire circumstances to make him so, and this was one of those circumstances. Once he came into the office after an emergency meeting with the Ministry, he went straight to the fireplace and made a firecall to Severus’ office.

            “Severus? Severus Snape?”

            Severus growled at being interrupted for the second time in a row. His first interruption was by Madame Poppy Pomfrey who demanded that he make her some hair-growing tonic to cure some students who had been accidentally hexed with some sort of balding curse during Charms class, and when she insisted that she didn’t have any more tonic in spite of Severus’ claims of her having some in the medicine emergency cabinet, she had forced the Potions Master to stomp all the way to the Hospital Wing and showed her the tonic, which she kept deep within all other miscellaneous medicinal potions collecting dust, hidden from the naked eye. That left him with a foul mood as he berated her for not cleaning the cabinet once in a while, and now with Albus’ serious face staring at him in the fire, it was not exactly helping, since he had tons of paperwork and thesis needed to be done for his research on a new potion and also marking the students’ appalling homework at the same time.

            “Yes, Albus?” Severus said grudgingly.

            “Please come to my office immediately. There is something I wish to discuss with you in private.”

            Severus rolled his eyes. How private can it get talking face to face in a firecall? But seeing Albus’ insistent face, he thought it better to just humour him and get it over with.

            “Fine,” Severus replied and put his papers down with a huff. Telling him to stand aside, he ended the firecall and Floo-ed into Albus’ office. “That immediate enough? What is it?”

            Albus motioned him to have a seat at his desk and passed him the Daily Prophet for today. Severus took it, his eyes looking at the old Headmaster questioningly.

            “I got the first printing before the publisher owled them around the wizarding community. Read it.”

            Severus obliged, scanning his eyes through the headlines. They read “MUGGLE FAMILY BRUTALLY MUTILATED” and as he read the content of the story and looked at the picture, which were Aurors disguising themselves as Muggle policemen mingling with the Muggle feds as they secretly used their wands hidden in police batons to remove traces of magic on the dead bodies, revealed that the family killed turned out to be the Dursleys. Severus knew it to be true as he recognized the dead uncle whom he saw before when Lucius showed him the file on Harry from the business, along with pictures, almost a year ago. He widened his eyes in disbelief, looking from the newspaper to Albus and back again. Albus nodded quietly.

            “Do you see who has been killed in the news?”

            Severus was speechless. The words didn’t seem to make any sense. The only thing that came out of his mouth was, “How…?”

            “I was called in very early at dawn this morning to attend an emergency meeting in the Ministry regarding this. Just recently, Aurors reported in that a few other Muggles and also a few witches and wizards were killed over the last week, but it was the Dursleys’ death that started bringing the Ministry into the big picture because they distinctively remember about them especially during the day I pleaded for their permission to adopt Harry, which involved their consent. We tried to see the connection and realized that those killed were somehow related one way or another to Harry’s bloodline.”

            “Do you think it is a coincidence that he killed them?” Severus suggested.

            “You and I both know that Tom Riddle is on the loose, and I did mention in my plea that there is a possibility of Riddle exacting revenge over Harry’s family due to the boy’s parents responsible for his capture, but I had not expected it to really come true. Reports from the Ministry received from the Aurors said that the Dursleys’ death was of the same pattern as Riddle’s other victims; the patterns were also the same with last week’s recent victims who were found to be related to Harry in some way as well. In fact, just 2 days ago, we discovered that Greta Maximillion, widow of our late Auror Vincent Gray who died 5 years ago in duty, and her son was killed by Riddle as well and was found to be James Potter’s cousin 5 times removed. He’s definitely out for Harry’s family tree. So far, after we’ve done a lineage potion check, Riddle has taken out a quarter of Harry’s family tree, but he is choosing them at random, so we don’t know who he would strike next.”

            “Do you think he is coming for Harry now?”

            “No one has any leads yet, but I’m suspecting that because of Riddle’s hate towards Harry’s parents and him taking it out on anyone and everyone that is related to Harry, he might be bound to find out about Harry’s existence sooner or later. I won’t exclude the possibility of Riddle going after Harry right this moment.”

            Severus nodded, looking back at the picture. He felt somehow that the Dursleys deserved a form of punishment after what they did to his little beloved, but he had never actually wanted them dead, not in this manner anyway. He felt almost sorry for them to suffer the consequences of an act committed by their nephew’s parents years ago. Ever since the day he saw in the headlines about Tom Riddle escaping from Azkaban, he knew this day would come sooner or later. It’s just that he didn’t want to put too much thought into it lest he would worry his little beloved.

            “What should we do?”

            “I’m at wits’ end at the moment,” Albus shook his head in dismay. “To be honest, I don’t know what I should do. I’m still recovering from the shock I got from the meeting this dawn in the Ministry. I love my little grandson very much, but I can’t think of anything to do to protect him. It’s very frustrating.”

            Severus rubbed his chin. He had a thought, but wasn’t too keen about it. He wanted to decide against mentioning it, but thinking of Riddle after Harry’s blood sent his own running cold at the thought of it. He heaved a silent sigh and finally let his mouth run out on him.

            “What about sending Harry away?”

            “Sending little Har away?” Albus asked in surprise. “Oh dear, it might work, but I couldn’t do that. I didn’t think you’d be the one to suggest that. Do you even _want_ to be separated from him?”

            “No, I don’t,” Severus admitted almost immediately, then sighed again, “But it is for his own good.”

            “I suppose you are right, Severus. After all, to protect him, sometimes tough love is necessary. Where do you suggest he should be relocated?”

            “Some place that cannot be found, preferably never to Riddle anyway. If only certain places that are Unplottable in Muggles’ eyes can be Unplottable for wizards as well. Why not try other wizarding schools that are affiliated to us? That way we can still keep in touch with him. How about Durmstrang? That school consists of strong men; they might be able to hide and protect Harry there.”

            “No, absolutely not!” Albus refused in an indignant voice. “Most of them spoke German and dear Har doesn’t know a single word of German—we’ve got no time to teach him anyway—and everyone there ran on testosterone and sheer chauvinism. I can bet you my beard that the minute you leave my little Har there, those hormone-crazed boys would drag him back into his old life faster than we can blink. I wouldn’t trust dear Har around them one bit.”

            “What about Beauxbatons? The people there are nice and decent, and I know for a fact Harry had been taught French for a while, judging by the homework I see him doing. They are mostly women over there; I’m sure Harry will be…”

            “Sorry, Severus, but Beauxbatons is also not exactly the best place to put him either. According to the lineage potions, about 3 of Harry’s relatives from his mother’s side stay there. The chances of Riddle striking next there are high. Besides, you don’t want Har to be under the care of that feminist Headmistress Maxime, do you?”

            “Good point,” Severus grimaced, remembering the Headmistress Maxime who came to Hogwarts during the Triwizard Tournament and her out-of-place appearance in the Yule Ball. “That leaves Salem. They may have assimilated and managed to mesh Muggle traits with the wizarding world to keep up in the changing times, and their Muggle attributes might prove good familiarity to Harry, but I myself wouldn’t trust Harry with those Americans. Besides, the cousin of the Headmaster of Salem was Harry’s first Master in the business. The last thing I want was to remind Harry about his old life by seeing him.”

            “Where else could we put Harry in anyway?” Albus scratched his chin in worry.

            “At this rate, I’d agree to anywhere as long as it’s remote and safe for my little pet, even if it means somewhere like in Ireland.”

            At that, Albus actually thought for a while before he lit up, “You know, Severus, maybe Ireland just might work. There are no known relatives of Harry over there, and I heard there is a new magic school newly built and established there in an Unplottable. I suppose I could go first thing after school to check out the new Irish school. Maybe I might know someone there. I’ll let you help me relay this news to Har, alright?”

            “I don’t want to upset him,” Severus replied, cursing inwardly at Albus for letting him be the bearer of bad news. “Do you think maybe if I tweak the truth a little it would be better for him to swallow?”

            “Maybe. But I strongly suggest you tell him as truthfully as possible.”

            “Alright, I will. Where is he, anyway?”

            “He’s still at home learning with his private tutor,” Albus replied proudly. “The day after tomorrow will be their last lesson and he will officially be in Hogwarts next semester. Isn’t it wonderful?”

            “Yes, he is too as well,” Severus replied half-heartedly. He was indeed happy that Harry was doing well but he had to remind himself constantly that Harry was now his own person and no longer his slave anymore. Albus noticed the look on Severus’ face and smiled knowingly.

            “You miss the good ol’ days, don’t you?”

            “Slightly. I suppose I fear that he will get too independent and found out he does not need me.”

            “You know that’s not true, Severus. He loves you just as much as you do to him.”

            “But he is still a boy…”

            “Not as much of a boy as you think. Care to hear a little secret? That is, if you promise not to tell little Har I told you.”

            If Severus had dog ears, it would’ve perked up by now.

            “I tried to test Harry’s true feelings towards you, and I asked him how much he really loves you. Do you know what he said?”

            Severus’ face showed signs of fearful anticipation. Albus chuckled.

            “He said that he loves you so much he is willing to marry you even if you didn’t ask and give you a family you deserve to have. That’s how much he loves you, Severus, so do not doubt his emotional maturity. He’s not the little boy you used to know anymore. He is more than that. He is your lover and my grandson, and he will stick by you, no matter what happens.”

            Severus felt as if his heart was going to swell up and explode at upon hearing this. He didn’t know whether to be comforted by this or to be even guiltier about what he was going to do later to his little beloved. Finally he closed his eyes, sighed and got up.

            “Would you send him to my rooms tonight? I have papers to finish.”

            “Of course, Severus. Good luck.”

            Severus nodded and Floo-ed back to his room, sitting down heavily at his desk.

            He needed more than just luck.

            He needed a miracle.

\--:--

            After their talk, Albus floo-ed back home as soon as school hours ended. The first thing he did once he was home was going over and checking out his little grandson. They were in the study and he could see Harry was almost done with the tutor. As soon as the tutor finished his class, he approached him.

            “So, how is he doing, Mr. Figgs?”

            “He is a very amazing boy,” Mr. Figgs, the tutor, gushed with pride. “He learns things very quick and I am proud to be his tutor. I think with the proper learning and training, he would not even need to go to school and still pass in, say, five years.”

            “Wonderful!” Albus chirped gleefully. “That is wonderful news. It feels almost sad that the day after tomorrow is your last day with him. You are doing so much progress with him.”

            “Yes, I must admit I’m already starting to miss teaching him. Well, he will be a fine student indeed once he’s got into Hogwarts. You wouldn’t mind if I end my final class with him by taking him out for a meal?”

            “No, no, not at all. Spend all the time you need with Harry on your last day. I’m sure he will need your last minute advice on things, won’t you, Har?”

            “Yes, please,” Harry smiled good-naturedly. “I’d love to spend as much time as I possibly can with you on our last day together.”

            “Isn’t he an angel?” Mr. Figgs fawned as he ruffled the boy’s hair. “Well, I’ll be going then. I’ll send myself out.”

            “Very well. See you tomorrow.”

            Mr. Figgs waved to Harry before he left. As Harry gathered his books, Albus sat opposite him.

            “Liking your lessons so far?”

            “Yes, Grandpa Albus. He’s such a nice tutor, I’d really love to learn some more with him, but I guess it’s about time I get exposed to the real stuff.”

            “Really looking forward to studying in Hogwarts, eh, Har?”

            Harry nodded gleefully as he put away his last books and stuffed it into his personal drawers beside the bookshelf. Albus could tell that he was both excited to be in Hogwarts for the challenge of a real school life and being closer to Severus, and his heart ached at the thought of the upcoming hurdle he was going to have to cross soon.

            “Har dear. I’m going to have to run an errand today and won’t be back home so soon. In fact, I might not be coming home tonight. Why don’t you spend the night at Severus’ place? I’ve already informed him to receive you.”

            “OK, but will you be gone long, like very long?”

            “Hopefully not. Go on, run along now.”

            Harry nodded and went to the main fireplace at the living room where it was connected to the school’s and floo-ed there, reaching Albus’ office in seconds. He greeted Fawkes and the Sorting Hat checked on whatever errands for the day at school left by Albus at his desk, running up and down and everywhere trying to get it done before he went to meet his beloved Severus. Once he double-checked to see everything all done and accounted for, he quickly made his way to Severus’ office and knocked on the door.

            “Severus? It’s me.”

            Surprisingly, there was no answer. He tried the knob and saw it wasn’t locked. He opened the door and popped his head in, trying his luck again.

            “Severus? Severus, you there? It’s me.”

            Apparently Severus, so overwhelmed by the talk he had with Albus that morning and the burden of telling Harry the truth, couldn’t concentrate on the papers and gave up for the time being. He sighed and turned to looking into the fire in his office and lost himself in thought, not even hearing Harry knock or come in. Harry was feeling worried. Severus usually responded almost immediately when he was around. Cautiously, he came close to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

            “Severus?” Harry called, making the Potions Master nearly jump before he looked over to see his little beloved.

            “Oh, pet,” Severus sighed both in relief and in dread. “It’s you.”

            “Something bothering you? You didn’t hear me knock n you didn’t answer my call.”

            “Come here, Harry,” Severus moved his chair and opened his arms.

            Harry knew he was avoiding the question and could feel in his guts that something was on Severus’ mind, but he decided to go with the flow. He nodded and went into Severus’ embrace, in which Severus picked him up and held him on his lap and kissed his cheek, before turning his head and kissing him on the lips. The Potions Master’s stomach was flipping over, doing somersaults within him. How could he tell his love that some mad man was after him? Albus said he was emotionally mature enough to handle anything, but he wasn’t entirely convinced. What if the boy broke down and cried? What if Harry went hysterical and clung to him for dear life, not wanting to let go or accept the fact that they would be separated again? He’d hate that to happen. Harry, on the other hand, was surprised that Severus was kissing him out of the blue. He eased into the kiss for a while until he noticed that the kiss wasn’t exactly wholehearted. He knew something was wrong. He pulled away, a pout on his face.

            “What is going on here? Severus, if you have something in your mind, please just tell me. I’m not a little child anymore.”

            “I…I know that,” Severus didn't want to let go of the kiss; it meant that he had to tell Harry. But he had to start somewhere. There was no sugar-coating it now that his beloved demanded it. “Pet, there was something in that newspaper today. This man—his name is Tom Riddle—has killed again. This time it was…your old family.”

            “You…You mean Master Vernon, Mistress Petunia and Young Master Dudley…?” Harry widened his eyes in shock at upon hearing this.

            “Why do you call them that?” Severus asked, surprised at the term he gave his own family.

            “Well…” Harry scratched his chin sheepishly, “because I have always been treated a slave at home rather than a family member, really. They never allow me to talk, but they made it very clear that I was to see them as Master, Mistress and Young Master, not as Uncle, Aunt and Cousin.”

            Severus’ heart ached at the thought of the boy’s own uncle making himself lord over him. He almost felt stupid for feeling sorry for his and his family’s death in the first place. _Maybe that gluttonous fat-ass deserved this sort of death after all,_ he thought before clearing his throat, “Yes, they are dead. Quite brutally, I might add.”

            “Who’s Tom Riddle?” Harry’s brow furrowed as he try to make sense of the name, since he had never known he was the true cause of his parents’ death. “What’s he got to do with them?”

            “That…is a bit more difficult to say…” Severus hesitated, took a deep breath and continued, “Harry, Riddle killed your parent.”

            It took a full 5 seconds of silence for Harry to digest this information before he laughed nervously, saying, “No way. Master Vernon told me my father died of drug overdose on the day I was born and my mother, after she gave me away to Master Vernon, killed herself a year after she was taken by loan-sharks to sell her body to pay off my father’s debts.”

            “I did not know them that well, just more or less a bit of a…acquaintance at school, but I do know for a fact that your Father would never do drugs and your Mother would never go so degradingly low as becoming a prostitute,” Severus replied, thinking between the lines of _Although_ _your Father was an ass._

“So…this Riddle guy killed my parents...What for?”

            “Well, the story is that…” Severus began to tell him the tale of Tom Riddle from what little he knew about the details he got from Lucius and some of the information he dug up on Harry and his parents’ past when Harry was still his slave. As he talked, Harry recalled the conversation the Old Married Couple had with Draco the day they discovered his friendship with the blonde and the fateful day where a respectable sort-of trust started between his blonde friend and the couple, and it seemed to make sense to him now about Tom Riddle’s character now that he was mentally literate enough to understand complicated words. It finally dawned to him that they were talking about him and his parents, and that Tom Riddle, the psychotic mad man who viewed killing as a sport and a twisted way of preserving elitism, was responsible for his damned childhood.

            “So…you think this Riddle guy might be after me?” Harry asked as soon as Severus was done with his tale.

            “He might,” Severus said worriedly. “We are not certain but I am not willing to take that chance.”

            “Why? Are you thinking of hiding me away?”

            “That is exactly what I want to do. In fact, your Grandpa Albus agreed to help you look for suitable quarters to hide out until the Ministry is able to capture him back in custody.”

            “Why?” Harry scowled, realizing what Albus said to him about ‘running an errand’. “Why must you hide me away? If what you say is true, that man killed my parents! I must face him head-on! I must avenge my parents’ death!”

            “You will do none of the sort. I forbid it!” Severus scolded, forgetting that he didn’t have the authority to do so.

            “This is my parents we’re talking about! He killed my parents! Why must I run away from him? I should be facing him, fighting him, doing to him what he did my parents! He’s the whole reason I was in such a fucking mess! And why are you forbidding me? You’re not my Master or anything…!”

            Harry gasped and cupped his mouth in horror, realizing what he had just said. How could he behave like this in front of his beloved? It was like rubbing salt on old wounds. His heart ached when Severus sighed at the last statement.

            “No, Harry, you’re right. I am not. You don’t have to listen to me all the time anymore,” Severus replied quietly as he stroked Harry’s cheek. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt. I love you, Harry.”

            “I’m sorry…I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…I didn’t mean what I said…I…” Harry sobbed, backing away a little as tears brimmed out of his eyes.

            “Shh, Harry. It’s fine, really,” Severus kept him close and kissed his head, then chuckled slightly, “You are starting to be a teenager; you’re supposed to say hurtful things.”

            “B-But I don’t want to say hurtful things…I love you so much…”

            “Shh…It’s OK, Harry, it’s OK.”

            With that, the older man tipped the boy’s head up and kissed him slowly and gently, his fingers reached up to his face to wipe away the tears. Harry kissed back the same way, wanting Severus to forgive him desperately. Severus responded by pulling him close, letting his tongue slide into Harry’s mouth and telling him with his actions that he would never hold a grudge against his beloved, making the boy moan into the kiss. Severus’s hands roamed under Harry’s shirt as he ran his fingertips over Harry’s nipples. As Harry shivered and moaned at the touch, Severus ran his tongue down Harry’s jaw to his neck and started nibbling.

            “Mmh…Sev…” Harry moaned, his senses tingle as the nibbling sent pleasurable jolts down his spine.

            Severus pulled the shirt clean off, now being able to see and touch Harry, and let his tongue do the walking. Feeling Sev’s tongue roaming all over him, Harry wrapped his arms around Severus’ neck, breathing erratically while Severus nipped at one of Harry’s nipples, making him squeak with pleasure. As he came back to his eye level, the older man pulled Harry up and sat him on the desk. Harry giggled, knowing what was going to happen next.

            “A little feisty, aren’t we, Sev?” Harry asked mischievously.

            “This has nothing to do with feisty,” Severus looked at Harry with glazed lustful eyes. “I want to make love to you.”

            “I know. It’s been a while.”

            “And I want it to be slow and gentle and no kinks. Just you and me,” Severus said as he kissed Harry’s neck softly. Harry pushed him away slightly and met with his questioning eyes.

            “Will you promise me one thing, Severus?”

            “Anything, Harry.”

            “If I have to be hidden away, will you still keep in touch with me and not leave me alone?”

            “If I could, I would follow you,” Severus nodded, “but yes, I will see you as often as I can.”

            “You promise?” Harry asked with those forlorn jade-green eyes the Potions Master loved so much.

            “Yes, Harry,” Severus replied and hugged him tight. “Don’t worry about it. I will not forget you.”

            “I'm glad,” the boy sighed in relief and cupped his hands around Severus’ cheeks. “Now make love to me.”

            Severus smiled and pushed him down on the desk and slowly, oh so slowly, pulled his pants down. Harry maneuvered his body a little to allow Severus to take off his pants easily, in which Severus threw them off and to the side. Severus then pulled out a small bottle of lube from his desk and uncorked it. He slicked up his fingers very liberally and pushed one in. Harry immediately hissed at the initial burn of the entry but soon started moaning at the feeling of it. Slowly Severus opened him up, stretching him bit by bit as he entered more fingers one by one to prepare him. Once he could see Harry’s face begging for more than just fingers, he took off his clothes and slicked himself generously with the lube before entering Harry, inch by inch, savoring the feeling.

            Harry moaned at the feeling of being entered, but whined in protest as it was taking too slow. He tried to claw lightly at Severus to make him go faster but Severus had his own plans for tonight as he avoided Harry’s demanding touch.

            “I said gentle and it will be gentle, Harry. So be good.”

            Harry pouted for a while before letting his beloved have his own way. He’d like to make up for yelling at him that way before anyway. Once he was fully inside, Severus leaned over and let his hips move slowly, in and out, making Harry pant breathlessly, savouring the wonderful feeling of his beloved's member moving in and out of him. Occasionally Harry expertly clenched and unclenched the member with his inner muscles to tease him, thinking that it would maximize his beloved’s pleasure and probably encourage him to move faster.

            “A tease, pet. Not good,” Severus growled in a half-annoyed tone and pulled Harry’s hips fully against him before he stilled, not carrying on with his ministrations. Harry immediately whined sadly at the loss of movement.

            “Please…Please don’t stop…I’m sorry…”

            Severus didn’t reply. He leaned down and kissed him, still not moving the way it would send Harry moaning and groaning in euphoria. He was going to make it clear to the boy that he was serious about making love with no kinks. Harry kissed him back hungrily, his hips gyrated on its own, wanting Severus to continue. Severus finally moved again, but at a very slow pace, still kissing, while Harry kissed back just as passionately, only stopping for breath once in a while as he tried to stay still and let Severus have his way with him. Seeing that he had gotten the message, he nuzzled the boy’s nose affectionately.

            “Good boy,” Severus whispered in his ear as he thrust deep into him nice and slow, “I could stay inside you forever. Feel your warmth around me.”

            “I love you, Sev. I love you so much…” Harry whimpered, wrapping his legs around his waist to bring him in deeper and to hit the spot.

            “I love you too, Harry, so much…” Severus groaned as he started moving fast, his control slowly breaking as he assaulted the bundle of nerves within Harry. Harry almost howled in approval at Severus’ speed.

            “Yes, yes, yes…! So good…!” Harry was screaming now, the sweet spot ravaged so hard that his beloved Potions Master was going in and out of focus in white hot flashes, almost like someone who showed you flickering lights to test if you had epilepsy, but not as intense. The more the nerves were hit, the tighter the pit of his stomach became, tying itself up in crazy knots that can never be undone.

            “You’re mine, Harry. All mine,” Severus whispered as he neared his edge. “And I am all yours.”

            “Mmh~! Yes, you are all mine, as I am you,” Harry moaned as he reached down to pump himself, feeling himself getting close.

            “Say it again, Harry,” Severus kept pounding into him, his climax coming fast.

            “You are all mine, Severus, as I am to you. I love you so much.”

            With that, Severus lost his control and cried out as he came into the boy. Harry pumped harder as he felt Severus’ seed filling him up, and a few seconds later he came as well, staining his hand and his stomach and squirted all over Severus’ chest. Both of them went into a bout of pleasurable spasms as they rode out their climax for almost a full 5 seconds before their limp bodies slumped onto the desk, panting breathlessly.

            “You’re amazing, Severus,” Harry panted as he ran his fingers through the older man’s hair. “Just like always.”

            “And you’re not too bad yourself,” Severus said as he poked Harry’s nose teasingly, “although you need to work on your patience.”

            “Can’t help it if you drive me into a frenzy all the time.”

            “That good, eh? Care to have another go later?”

            Harry blushed for a moment before looking away, pouting, “Horny toad.”

            “I take that as a yes,” Severus smirked before carrying Harry bridal style and entered the bedroom.


	53. Chapter 53

            Kyteler-Magee Boarding School for Wizards and Witches, the new school for budding young wizards and witches of Ireland, stood tall and proud on a lone island which was recently marked as an Unplottable. It wasn’t as ancient like Hogwarts or as beautiful as the palace grounds of Beauxbatons, and neither was it tall and strong like Durmstrang or modern like Salem, but it was big and proper nonetheless. It was a fairly new school that looked almost like the makings of an old mansion, with its grounds three times the size of the grounds of the White House and the building itself about roughly four times the size of Harvard. Recently established roughly about 6 months after Hogwarts’ Triwizard Tournament, it had its fair share of students getting into the learning syllabus as all other students in magic schools across the globe do, and was run by a retired Quidditch coach Casey Kyteler-Magee, thus the namesake of the school.

            That was where Albus, Severus and Harry were after Albus managed to, after a friendly dinner, some sherry and long hours of nostalgic talk, arrange a formal meeting with Casey. Albus and Casey went way back when they were just school pals. Casey was best friend and neighbor of Gellert Grindelwald, Albus’ long time school-boy crush, and more or less played a part of Stupid Cupid for Albus, but unfortunately Albus was too shy to confess his feelings and Gellert had his eyes set on another—a girl, in fact—that the relationship went unrequited. Despite that, Albus and Casey remained old friends and got in touch with one another occasionally, and it was almost sheer luck for him that she was acting Headmistress of Kyteler-Magee, or Kym as the school is known, and that Kym began their semesters at a date later than the usual date set by the Ministry for all magic schools because of it still new in the education system.

            While Albus and Severus were in her office discussing matters, Harry was allowed to tour the school grounds on his own. The school reminded him of the museum where they kept the royal jewels of the English monarchy he once went to when his 3rd Muggle-born Master was in a good mood to take him out. Of course, at that time, to avoid staring eyes and be charged with pedophilia since they were in the Muggle world, Harry was forced to wear a blonde wig to match his Master’s dirty blonde hair and be dressed in gothic-lolita clothings (one of the Master’s many fetishes) and passed off as his Master’s ‘daughter’ throughout the trip, although it wasn’t very ‘fatherly’ of him to suddenly drag him into the restricted area of the museum and screw his brains out (another one of the Master’s many fetishes). Harry cringed at the memory of being involuntarily aroused by the prospects of being caught while doing it in a public place; he hoped Severus didn’t have that sort of liking anytime soon, kinky as it may be.

            Soon, he walked past what looked like a science lab, only the utensils used were of Potions Class nature. He saw a young man in there seemingly studying his Potions textbook while doing practical experimentations. He looked roughly about Draco’s age, maybe a little younger, and had neatly combed short hair the colour of dark roasted almonds that past just a little bit beyond his shoulders. With tan skin and slightly dark brown eyes the colour of those 75% dark chocolate Hermione likes to eat, he had the trappings of a man who could make any man or woman look up to him as a big brother figure, maybe more to some. He wasn’t wearing his school uniform though; he wore a canvas shirt that that exposed his chest and a pair of designer khaki pants and designer shoes, but had his school robe bearing the school badge of Kym over them, and Harry couldn’t help thinking it looked rather fetching on him. Somehow, he reminded the boy of a male version of Hermione.

            He heard him mutter “Wart of trolls” and was about to enter to see clearly what he was making when a flutter sounded at his feet. He looked down and saw it was a parchment list of ingredients for his potion.

            “Oh drat,” the young man grumbled as he looked down, as if searching for something. Harry knew then that the parchment belonged to him. “Where is it?”

            “This yours?” Harry said as he came up to him with the list.

            “Oh, thank you,” the young man smiled as he took the list from him. “It’s very important for my reference.”

            “No problem.”

            The young man regarded Harry a little before noting, “I know almost everyone’s face here in Kym and I definitely never seen you around here.”

            “I’m not a student here,” Harry grinned. “Well, I will be, if Grandpa Albus manages to convince your Headmistress to accept me.”

            “Oh, that’s nice. Keep your fingers crossed then. Headmistress Kyteler-Magee is a little picky when it comes to students. Don’t worry, she’s not one of those pureblood elitist, but she definitely has high standards when it comes to picking her students based on their abilities and talents. I was originally enrolled into Beauxbaton and studied there for two years until this school came, much to my mother’s relief, coz she was afraid I was turning into those pansy flowery French girls.”

            “Is she a fierce Headmistress or mean or anything negative…?”

            “Naw, she’s alright. She’s tough, being that she was a Quidditch coach and all, but fair.”

            Once he was closer to the young man, he noticed that he had a scar on his neck that runs almost dangerously near his jugular. The young man noticed Harry staring and gave him a good-natured smile.

            “Don’t mind the scar. Long story here.”

            “Watcha making?” Harry, a little embarrassed at being found staring, decided to change the subject, asking as he leaned near the bubbling cauldron to see the concoction.

            “Just something I do for the sake of it. I know the semester hasn’t started yet, but I heard once you’re in the OWLs era, there is no such thing as too early to study something. I just hope I’ll be able to ace it.”

            “OWLs? You’re a 5th year then?”

            “Yup, guilty as charged,” the young man chuckled. “It’s nice here. I’m sure you’ll like it once you get used to it. I take it you didn’t get the letter of acceptance from Headmistress Kyteler-Magee to be having your grandfather coming to discuss enrolment matters with her?”

            Harry shook his head, “Long story here as well, but we’re hoping to get the green light from your Headmistress.”

            “I’m sure you’ll get it. I can see you have potential judging by your deductive talent, Mr.…?”

            “Harry,” Harry smiled and shook his hand. “Harry James Percival Jr. Potter-Dumbledore. You can just call me Har or Percy. That’s what Grandpa Albus calls me.”

            “Har is just fine,” the young man chuckled at the name that was a mouthful. “I’m Aaron Turunen.”

            “Pleased to meet you, Aaron Turunen.”

            Soon, after watching the young man named Aaron completing his potion, Albus and Severus finally found him after being led by the Headmistress Casey Kyteler-Magee. As Aaron greeted them and brought Harry to Severus, Harry had a good look at Casey who came over to give him a pat on the head. She was roughly around Albus’ age, judging by the number of wrinkles in her face, but even so, she still looked just as wonderful as she was wise. Her long tresses resembled the colour of the moon, with a little bit of golden blonde clinging in between, and her eyes resembled the colour of duckweed. She stood about as tall as Minerva McGonagall and was about a little thinner than Pomona Sprout, which showed how she was more or less enjoying the retired Quidditch life.

            “So, how’d you like the tour around the school, Mr. Potter-Dumbledore?” Casey asked with her twinkling smile.

            “Very much, Headmistress,” Harry replied cheerfully. “Everything looks wonderful.”

            “I see you have made a friend already,” Severus said as he nodded in acknowledgement to Aaron, in which Aaron nodded back after falling into a daze staring at the Potions Master who, surprisingly, seemed to appeal to him somehow with his dark and mysterious aura, even though to most people he looked like he could very well be a vampire in real life who sucked people’s blood.

            “And I see you have met your future lower-classmate,” Casey said as she introduced Aaron to the adults. “Meet Aaron Turunen, one of our school’s pride and joy whom we managed to snag from Beauxbaton. We have high hopes for this young Muggle-born to ace his remaining school years here. With proper guidance, I’m sure Mr. Potter-Dumbledore will be just as successful as he is.”

            “If you can ignore people talking about me behind my back about me sleeping around to earn my points,” Aaron rolled his eyes in annoyance.

            “Poppy-cock, Turunen. You know better than to allow such displeasing rumours deter you.”

            “Aaron,” Harry said as he introduced the adults to Aaron, “this is Albus Dumbledore, my grandpa and Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and this is Severus Snape, my…uh…”

            “Intended,” Severus continued, putting his arm around Harry, making Harry blush and Aaron widen his eyes in surprise. “I am his intended.”

            “My, my,” Casey chuckled. “It’s good to be young, isn’t it, Albus?”

            “Indeed,” Albus grinned.

            “Well then, if it’s alright with you, I’ll have my caretaker escort you over to the nearest Portkey. Have a safe journey. It’s been a pleasure talking to you, Albus.”

            “Thank you very much, Casey. I’ll be seeing you the day after tomorrow with my grandson then.”

            “Bye bye, Aaron,” Harry said as he waved goodbye to him. “See you soon!”

            “Ditto here, Har. Bye.”

            As Aaron and Casey watched the trio be led out of Kym by the caretaker, Casey rubbed her chin thoughtfully, saying, “Very pretty little boy, isn’t he, Turunen? His eyes are very beautiful indeed. It’s no wonder that Severus guy seem to swell with pride when he introduced himself as the boy’s intended.”

            “I guess some people just get all the luck,” Aaron shrugged in defeat and went back to his potions.

\--:--

            “No, pet,” Severus stopped Harry from leaving and whispered a levitation spell to put him into the bath tub before joining him. “You are going in with me.”

            Harry blushed as he leaned back against the tub. It was his last day with Severus before moving in to Kym and Severus had personally asked permission from Albus to allow the boy to spend the night with him. Albus readily agreed and assured him that his hired help will take care of the packing, knowing that it would probably be a long time before they could meet again. But before Harry spent the night with Severus, he went to spend his last study day with Mr. Figgs the tutor as promised, and they had almost lost track of time talking and hanging around Honeydukes that by the time the boy came to Severus’ home, it was raining cats and dogs and Harry looked like he had just waded through the Niagara Falls to get there. Needless to say, Greta the Head Housekeeper fussed over him like a mother hen before Neville and Colin laughed it away and led the dripping boy straight to a worried Severus.

            “Come here,” Severus said as he pulled Harry close to his embrace while soaking in the tub, enjoying the warmth. Harry instinctively put his arms around him slowly, leaning his head against the older man’s chest and listened to his steady heartbeat. Severus then slowly and quietly reached down to tease Harry’s nipples.

            “Please don’t…” Harry moaned slightly at the touch.

            “Why not?” Severus asked deviously, leaning over to lick his earlobes as he pinched one of them ever so slightly, rubbing it between his fingers.

            “N…Not here…” Harry panted. “I want it in…ah! In bed…mmh!”

            “Deal with it, Harry. Tonight is my last night with you, and I want to savour it as much as possible, regardless the situation. Hush and just feel, pet.”

            Gently, Severus’ hand snaked down to stroke Harry’s cock, bringing it to life. Harry could felt his cock twitch with excitement as he tilted his head back, his nails digging into Severus’ back. Severus tilted the boy’s face to him to kiss him fully on the lips as he continued to stroke him, while his other hand guided Harry’s to touch his own. Harry knew very well, what he wanted as he gripped him a little tightly and stroked him up and down, kissing him back tenderly. Moaning at the feeling of Harry’s hand on his cock, Severus ran his tongue along Harry’s lips to make them part before diving his tongue into him, exploring the inside of the boy’s mouth.

            “Mmh…Feels so good, Severus…” Harry echoed the older man’s moan, closing his eyes to kiss him some more. Maybe it was the fact that it was their last night together or maybe because it had been a long while since they got down and dirty, but whatever the reason, he could feel his body on fire. He felt like he was going to pass out or burn alive. He pulled his lips off, panting with effort to get air to his brain again after kissing for what felt like forever.

            “Well, let’s make it feel much better then, shall we?”

            So saying, Severus had his hands on Harry’s sides and picked him up to sit on the side of the tub before taking the boy’s cock in his mouth and sucked. Needless to say, it made the boy screaming his approval in more pleasurable ways than one. Seeing his little beloved enjoying it so much, Severus sucked harder, lashing random patterns with his tongue while his hand reached to massage the balls.

            “Oh, god…Stop…! Stop…! I am going to come soon, Sev,” Harry cried, biting his lip to hold back his moan that was getting louder and higher by the minute.

            “Come,” Severus teased the tip of the cock with his tongue. “Let me taste you.”

            “But…mmh…! But what about you…?”

            “Trust me, pet, this won’t be your last orgasm yet. Don’t hold back, pet. I want to hear you scream for me.”

            With that, Severus went back to suck him even harder, teasing the balls as he did. Harry could no longer hold back and arched against him as he came, his body feeling over-sensitive as his legs and arms twitched along with his cock. Severus drank him all in, every last drop flowing warmly down his throat.

            “Mmm, a bitter-sweet taste. Delicious.”

            Harry blushed as he panted, waiting for his body to calm down from the tremors. He slowly slid off the side of the tub and reached down to continue stroking Severus’ member.

            “Shall I return the favour, _Master_?” Harry grinned, calling that title in the sexy way he knew Severus loved to hear.

            “Maybe,” Severus smirked. “Or maybe I’d like something more than that.”

            Harry had half-expected it as he felt Severus’ finger entering him as he let out a moan. As he felt Severus’ lips enveloping his again, he felt another finger enter him, thrusting in and out to prepare him. He smiled inwardly as he kissed him back, putting his hands around him. He knew Severus always liked to start it off nice and slow, and always worried that he might hurt his little pet if he was not gentle and did not make it pleasurable for both sides. Even as they made love, Severus was always the gentleman.

            Which was one of the reasons why he loved him so much.

            After stretching him enough with a third finger, Severus broke the kiss and leaned his forehead against Harry’s, their nose touching as he asked, “Do you want me inside you, pet?”

            “Yes, please. Fill me up with your cock, Master.”

            “Oh, I will,” Severus said as he picked him up by the hips. “In fact, I’ll be real slow. Let you feel every inch of me.”

            As Severus promised, he, very slowly, lowered Harry onto his cock, feeling the wonderful tight heat around him squeezing for all its worth. If it weren’t for Severus’ strong endurance, he would come by that alone. He looked up to see Harry closing his eyes tight and biting his lip, and it was evident from Harry’s facial expression that he loved every inch of his rod entering him.

            “Don’t close your eyes, pet,” Severus whispered as he pushed him down all the way to the hilt. “I want to see those beautiful green orbs looking back at me. I want to see your love for me.”

            Harry obeyed, opening his eyes as he kept his hold on Severus’ shoulders, while the older man held onto his hips and started bobbing him up and down nice and slow. A groan escaped from those young luscious pair of lips, enticing him even more as he watched the boy’s head roll to the side, indulging the feeling of Severus’ manhood moving in and out of him.

            “P…Please…” Harry pleaded. “D…Deeper…Almost…there…”

            Severus smirked and thrust a few times before he shifted his angle to hit the bundle of nerves in him, making the boy see stars in his mind’s eye.

            “Oh God!” Harry gripped Severus hard, his body shivering at the jolt of pleasure and his cock coming back to life again. “Do that again! Please!”

            Severus chuckled, feeling glad that he had made his pet scream. He bobbed him up and down again, and every time he brought him down, his cock hit the sweet spot just right, just the way he knew he liked it.

            “Dear gods! Master! Harder, Master, deeper!”

            “Good, good! Feel it! Feel it, pet! Feel it in your bones! Feel it within you! Let loose every fiber of your being! I want you to feel me inside you so hard that you will never think of any other but me!”

            Harry let loose scream after scream as Severus continued his ministration, the next time harder and deeper than the first. His senses were bombarded in such a way that his every nerve was on fire. He felt like he was going to die from the pleasure alone. Without removing his cock, Severus wanted him as he moved him into missionary position, placing his head carefully against the side of the tub and moved faster, pounding into him, shortening the distance between them that could not possibly be any closer. Harry panted against Severus’ neck, clawing at his back and wrapping his legs around the older man’s neck as he felt his spot being pounded again and again, forcing the bundle of nerves to spread its jolts like electricity throughout every inch of his body, ending with the white hot flashing stars in his mind’s eye and the imploding tightening in the pit of his stomach.

            Once he felt Severus’ teeth biting down at his neck, leaving a lovebite, Harry had lost his senses completely. He couldn’t form words to warn Severus he was coming as ribbons upon ribbons of his seed landed between their bodies in the water. Severus followed after a few seconds later, filling him to the brim as he groaned his approval. It felt almost like time had forgotten to unfreeze itself before the couple finally gotten down from their high.

            “You were amazing, pet,” Severus whispered as he licked a stray drop of sweat on Harry’s temple.

            “So were you,” Harry whispered back, his body still slightly in spasms from the pleasure.

            “After tomorrow,” Severus slowly pulled out and got off him before cleaning the both of them, “we won’t get to do this as often as we like.”

            “I know,” Harry sighed and rubbed his face against Severus’ hand that held the detachable showerhead. “I’m missing it already.”

            “Then let’s savour it while it lasts. I promised you this wouldn’t be your last orgasm, didn’t I?”

            Before Harry could make sense of those last words, he had already found himself being carried out of the tub, dried with a drying spell and made a beeline to the bed.

\--:--

            “Well, here we are, this will be your dorm for the next 7 years to come.”

            Harry looked around while Aaron helped him to put his suitcase down. He had expected to have a dorm room just like how Draco and Ron’s dorm would be in Hogwarts, and that he might be sharing with a few other dorm mates like they did, but apparently, because Albus and Severus could afford it, they requested Harry to have a room of his own, thus Casey decided to place him at the school condominium, which was an independent building situated slightly away from the regular dormitories of the school. Harry felt that they were a little bit too extravagant in getting him the best, but he took to comfort that he may have his own privacy. Again, the setting was almost like the royal museum, only a little less grand.

            “Your bedroom is over there, joined together with the bathroom,” Aaron said as he helped him familiarize with his surroundings, “living room over here, kitchen over there and you get a great view from the verandah here. My dorm is just right next to you, so you’re not at total seclusion and isolation from everyone else. I’ll take you to get to know the other people who live in this condo, so don’t worry…Ah, hello there, Judith!”

            Harry turned to see a solemn-looking girl coming in carrying a whole wad of books in her arms. She had long brown locks the colour of milk chocolate running down her waist, with one side of her fringe dangling lazily over her forehead the colour of snow white, and had eyes the colour of blood-red rubies that seemed to be glaring unkindly at him. She was wearing a huge T-shirt dress that ran all the way past her knees, with one of the sleeves totally covering her whole arm and hand, leaving the collar slanting to one side, revealing her shoulder, and her baggy knee-high socks lopped over her black-buckle shoes. He could tell from experience that she was wearing hand-me-downs, possibly from a sister.

            “Harry,” Aaron led Harry to the girl and introduced her to him, “this is Judith Cecelia Light. She is in her 3rd year. She also lives her in this condo just 2 dorms away from me. We’ll be neighbours from now on. These here,” he pointed at the textbooks she was holding, “are your textbooks that you will be using starting the semester starts. One thing we have in common with Hogwarts is that we have our own Houses to go to, which you will be sorted later tonight. Welcome to Kym, Har.”

            “Thanks,” Harry smiled, then reaches over to take the books from the girl’s arms. “Pleased to meet you. I’m Harry James Percival Jr. Potter-Dumbledore. You can call me Har or Percy. Thank you for bringing my boo…”

            Before he could finish his words, the girl named Judith scowled at him and slammed the books against his chest before stomping away, seemingly fuming. Aaron was as taken aback as Harry at her sudden behavior before the former gave him an apologetic grin and chased after her. Severus just so happen to pass him by before entering Harry’s dorm.

            “What was that about?”

            “Beats me,” Harry shrugged as he placed his books onto the living room couch. “Where’s Grandpa Albus?”

            “He’s tending to some last minute paperwork and enrolment contracts with the Headmistress. He’ll be waiting for me outside the school compound,” Severus replied as he knelt down to Harry’s level. “I cannot stay long either. There are things I must do as well.”

            “Riddle things?”

            “Yes, Riddle things. Pet, you are here for your own protection, for your own good. You know that, right?”

            “Yes, I do. You will do as you promised, right, that you will keep in touch and not leave me alone?”

            “Don’t worry, pet,” Severus said as he caressed Harry’s soft cheeks. “I am not one to break promises.”

            Harry nodded and leaned against the hand that caressed him. Oh, how he wished it didn’t have to come to this, but the situation at hand was not giving him much say on the matter.

            “Alright. I have to go now. You be a good boy, you hear?”

            Before he could say “Yes”, Severus kissed his forehead and left almost as quickly as he came. Just when he thought he was gone for good, Severus suddenly returned.

            “No, this is not the right goodbye.”

            The older man came up to him in a flash and took his lips fully, kissing him deeply. Harry’s eyes opened wide, his arms automatically going around Severus as the latter traces his tongue along the former’s lips, wanting him to return the favour. Slowly, Harry opened his mouth for Severus and reached out with his tongue to touch his, prompting Severus to kiss him some more, doing French like the world was only theirs. Harry moaned into the kiss, pulling him close as if he let go, he would die. After what felt like a passionate forever, Severus let go suddenly, leaving a very fazed Harry rather out of it.

            “I love you, Harry.”

            “Wha…?”

            Severus was gone before he could realize what was happening. He found himself standing in the empty room, no longer feeling his beloved’s presence, as it would be for the 7 school years to come. Forlorn, Harry shifted his lonely gaze to the floor.

            “I love you too, Severus.”


	54. Chapter 54

            “Well? Are our cubs alright?”

            “Hush, Remy, and let her do her job.”

            Remus sniggered bashfully as he stepped aside to let Prof. Sinistra’s mother, Mrs. Hetalia Sinistra, carry on examining the baby with her wand and her other equipment. Draco was coming close to his 6th month and the cubs in him were getting feistier and feistier as time went by. Prof. Sinistra, all-rounder as she may be, did not have the exact legalities of a midwife to handle the examination despite being brought up in such environment, but she did have a mother who worked part-time as a midwife in St. Mungo, so every 3 weeks since she started becoming Draco’s private tutor, Mrs. Sinistra would come over and do the examinations and follow-up procedures to go with it. Severus was there as well whenever the examination took place to get the list of potions Mrs. Sinistra advised he should take during the blonde’s pregnancy.

            “Well, everything seems to be fine,” Mrs. Sinistra said as she waved away the cloudy images that served like a magical version of an ultrasound. “Their heartbeats are as strong as their last check-up and yes, it is confirmed, you have two beautiful little girls.”

            “Told you,” Draco grinned smugly at Remus, in which Remus rolled his eyes and chuckled humorously.

            “Yes, yes. I owe you one.”

            “Well?” Severus approached Mrs. Sinistra, who was packing up her things, and asked, “Anything I need to prepare for him?”

            “Nothing at the moment,” the old midwife replied. “Just make sure he takes his supplement potions and keep up with the Lamaze breathing. Other than that, I think he and the babies are doing fine.”

            “Very well,” Severus nodded, making a mental note of it.

            “Well, well, I see what the commotion is about.”

            Severus rolled his eyes as the familiar smell of booze-ridden clothes permeated the area.

            “Black. Finally recovered from your hangover?”

            “Don’t get smart with me, Snivellus,” Sirius barked as he harshly made way for Prof. Sinistra and her mother to leave the room. “This is my house and I expect you to at least respect that. When are you all gonna bloody leave, anyways?”

            “We’ve been through this forever, Sirius,” Draco sighed, tired of Sirius’ constant drunken verbal abuse. “As soon as I have my twins, we will be out of your hair in no time. You won’t even know we’re gone.”

            “Yeah, well, don’t go having the brats here in my home. I don’t wanna have all that birth jizz all over my bed or anything.”

            Remus growled, glaring at him, clearly insulted by that remark.

            “And keep that mutt on a leash, Drake! Honestly, why did I even agree to put up with this anyway? You are a half-breed whom Luc had no bloody common sense to give the snipping as soon as he bought him and you are carrying two cursed children that should be terminated as soon as it spawned in you. I tell you, if the Ministry finds out about this, not even the amount of my wealth is gonna save you two from being dragged out of my house by the nose and locked up in Azkaban.”

            “You just be sure to uphold your end of the bargain and everything will be over before you know it,” Severus warned with a dangerous glint in his eyes. “What do you want now, other than insulting my godson and his mate?”

            Sirius let out a long frustrated sigh and grumbled, “Cousin Tonks is here, _again,_ and she brought company.”

            No sooner she said that than the said company came in, exclaiming Draco’s name and hugging ensued. Tonks, ever since she heard about Draco’s pregnancy from Severus, had become more or less a regular visitor to the Black estate to visit her little Drakey-poo and ogle over the babies in him, stating time and time again that she couldn’t wait to be officially the babies’ godmother once they are born. Hermione and Ron made friends with Tonks through Harry and Severus and would join her in her visit to Draco whenever they can, and today was one of their lucky days to get out of school to do so.

            “Careful with your visits, guys,” Draco smirked at the Old Married Couple. “You’re gonna be behind studies if this keeps up. After all, I can’t miss you guys if you’re not gone.”

            “Are you saying you don’t like our presence, Draco?” Ron put his hands on his hips, but from the tone of his voice, he was faking anger.

            “As much as I like seeing your red head. You come any more frequent and you’ll set fire to this place.”

            “Oh, stop bickering, you two!” Hermione giggled at their play-fighting. “You guys are in your 6th year, for crying out loud.”

            Sirius rolled his eyes at this while Severus and Remus just shook their head and took all this in humorously. Despite the fact that Draco and the Old Married Couple bicker the moment they meet, they knew that in truth, they had gotten over their initial rivalry as house enemies and were actually enjoying each other’s company like normal teenagers should. If only the other Gryffindors and Slytherins could behave like this.

            “Oh, I almost forgot,” Tonks said as she produced a few parchments on the bed. “Here’s a bit of update on the Riddle case.”

            Everyone, including the previously apathetic Sirius, leaned over to look. Ever since Tom Riddle was out at large, every Auror was given a copy of the Potter lineage family tree to keep track of the possible victims and also be prepared to strike out names if they were too late to track down someone and the person or persons end up dead. As Tonks unrolled the parchment, they all saw that the names were getting struck out more and more, till there was barely enough branches left to show any signs of hope that any of the Potter bloodline would remain. The only comfort they got out of reading the parchment was that Harry’s name was still on the branch, showing that Harry was still alive and well.

            “At least that is a sight for sore eyes,” Severus sighed as he looked away from the parchment, his heart ached at the thought of the name being struck off.

            “This is terrible,” Hermione picked up the lineage parchment and scanned through the names that were struck off. “He’s really creating a sort of genocide out of this. I really fear for Harry now.”

            “Bloody hell, so do I!” Ron exclaimed. “There have been a few times when I woke up all sweaty because I had a nightmare of something bad happen to old Har.”

            “I agree with Hermione,” Draco said as he took the parchment from Hermione and studied it as well. “He is moving too fast and killing them off quicker than you can blink. What are the Aurors doing about this, Auntie Nymphadora?”

            “Sadly, not much,” Tonks sighed and shrugged. Normally she would snarl at anyone who called her by her first name and insisted to be called by her last but surprisingly even to Sirius, Draco was the only one who is allowed to call her by that name. “We were charged by the Ministry to go and warn the families on the list of the impending dangers of Riddle’s attacks, and some of them who were on the higher priority list were relocated to safe houses nearby the Ministry district, but no matter what we do, Riddle always seems to be one step ahead of us. People are wondering whether there is a spy or insider among us to be able to be ahead of our every move, and the Ministry is starting to suspect one another. Just last week, when we sent Aurors _and_ Dementors to safeguard one of the higher priorities, they were defeated without a single struggle and…well, you know how Riddle’s MO with his targets.”

            A shiver ran down Severus’ spine as he remembered the picture in the Daily Prophet of the Dursley massacre, fearing the worst for his little beloved.

            “We’ve done an investigation in Riddle’s cell where he was imprisoned before he escaped with the help of a corrupt Dementor, thanks to that ratty Pettigrew fellow. It seems that Pettigrew had managed to sneak in a wand when he was arrested—no idea how the body search could miss that—and used the Patronus charm to force one of the Dementors into submission, then ordering it to release him before going to Riddle’s cell and releasing him as well. He made use of its chill factor to freeze the heavy duty chains that was used to tie Riddle down before Pettigrew used a spell to break the frozen chains.”

            “Bloody smart bastard!” Ron grumbled.

            “Peter has always known to be rather resourceful,” Sirius said as he read some of the investigation reports. “I wouldn’t be surprised that he hid the wand where the sun doesn’t shine. So what of the Dementor?”

            “It was somehow subdued and killed by Riddle,” Tonks replied in slight morbid fascination. “We have yet to know how powerful Riddle can be with or without his wand, but we know how deep his hatred for the Potter bloodline is.”

            “How bad is it?” Remus asked, equally worried for his little friend.

            “We examined his cell after the initial shock of his escape settled in. It seems that he had been making use of his time being bound in those magically-bonded heavy duty chains by practicing his wandless magic instead. On his walls were burnt marks all over spelling the words ‘Death to Potters’ over and over again, literally covering it. He even managed to engrave some of the words onto the chains when he ran out of room to write.”

            “Damn…” Draco breathed. And he thought his own method of grudge-holding was worse.

            “I hope wherever Harry is, he is safe and well hidden,” Hermione nibbled her thumbnail, a habit she had whenever she got a little agitated. “I feel so bad for him right now. Being his friend and incapable of helping him.”

            “Aren’t we all, Mione?” Ron sighed, stroking her back to ease her.

            “Can I trust you all with a secret?”

            Everyone looked up at Severus who had been rather silent throughout the whole ordeal. Gathering his wits, Severus let out a sigh and told those present where Harry was. He told them about the arrangement between Albus and Kyteler-Magee and Harry officially a student in Kym under the watchful eye of the Headmistress and the guidance of the young boy named Aaron. Once he done telling his tale, he felt somewhat lifted, as if his burden has been evened out for other people to share.

            “I have heard and read about that school,” Hermione noted. “It’s rather respectable and had been getting good reviews and building up a moderate reputation so far, but not too big of a reputation to give away anything. I think Harry will be safe there.”

            “He’d better be!” Ron exclaimed. “A new school in a new Unplottable in the middle of nowhere in Ireland better be like Fort Knox to protect him! A child’s life is on the line here!”

            “You must promise me never to reveal this to anyone,” Severus said. “You must swear on it. And that means you too, Black, since you heard it as well.”

            “Me??” Sirius scowled. “You’re the one who couldn’t keep your trap shut and spouted it out! Why drag me into this?!”

            “Swear it, Black, or else!”

            “For Harry, I’m willing to swear it under the Unbreakable Vow if I have to,” Draco volunteered.

            “No, you can’t, not with your condition,” Remus took his hand worriedly.

            “Maybe I have a way. It’s not as lethal as the Unbreakable Vow, but just as binding,” Tonks offered as she went to Draco’s desk. “May I, Drakey-poo?”

            “Sure, go ahead,” Draco replied.

            Tonks rummaged through Draco’s desk and took out a piece of paper and a quill. She scribbled something on the paper at the desk before bringing it forward to the rest of the group. When they peered in to see the content, it read:

_I solemnly swear that whatever has been spoken within this room regarding Harry James Percival Jr. Potter-Dumbledore’s whereabouts remains in this room._

_Signed:_

            “It works very well among my colleagues during our secret Auror Meetings and also towards people we wish to refrain from spilling the beans on ultimately crucial cases. Basically we sign our names in blood on this paper under this section, and then cast the appropriate spell—which I cannot reveal to you due to my job—and have someone who is outside of the circle to keep the paper.”

            “But it’s just paper with ink,” Remus said. “It’s not exactly binding. And…what do you mean by signing our names in blood?”

            “That’s the binding part,” Tonks replied. “Once you signed the name there and cast the spell, whenever you feel the urge to let the cat out of the bag, the spell will act like some sort of obliviating spell to hold your tongue, making you forget what you wanted to spill in the first place. And to get that blood, we’ll have to use this.”

            Severus widened his eyes as he saw her whip out a pink quill from her robes pocket. He recognized that quill anywhere. Hermione the Human Encyclopedia widened her eyes at the sight of it, obviously recognizing it as well.

            “Is that…Is that Umbridge’s quill?”

            “Technically no. We managed to duplicate her original quill and use it for our own for this kind of contract.”

            “What about that quill, Uncle Sev?” Draco asked.

            “Umbridge used it before to punish students back when she replaced Flitwick as a substitute teacher while I was still a teacher trainee,” Severus explained with utter disgust in his voice. “Whenever a student crosses her, she would make them write lines, and the ink is taken from your own blood, leaving very painful lesions on your hands. I know students have to be punished whenever they deserve it, but even that is too harsh for my standards.”

            “So? Shall we?” Tonks offered the quill to anyone who wanted to sign first. Severus almost immediately came over to sign it, and true to what he said, the teens had their first hand experience in witnessing the effects of signing using that accursed quill. No sooner he signed it than the letters were scrawled onto the back of his palm, as if there was an invisible knife cutting through his skin to spell out his name where the bloody ink was drawn out from. Once the scrawling was done, the teens and Remus looked like they almost forgot to breathe.

            “Bloody hell!” Ron exclaimed his trademark remark.

            “Uh…How many lines did you say that Umbridge woman made them write?” Draco asked.

            “Until they get it into their heads, as she put it,” Severus replied, massaging his hand that was starting to throb. “Trust me, it wasn’t pretty.”

            “Bloody hell!”

            Despite Remus’ protests, Draco was the second to volunteer to sign, followed by Hermione, Ron, Tonks, Remus and finally a very reluctant Sirius, and they all felt the wrath of the scrawling on their skin. As soon as Tonks was done casting a wordless magic onto the paper, she looked up and said, “Now, who of the outside circle should keep this?”

            “I might know just the person,” Sirius smirked, then stuck his head out of the door, yelling, “PAPRIKA!!!”

            Paprika came in a jiffy, dressed in her naked apron again. Hermione had to slap the upside of Ron’s head to get his goo-goo eyes off the servant’s naked body.

            “You called, Master Black?”

            “You still have that locket I gave you?” Sirius asked in a commanding tone.

            “Y-Yes, Master. Why…?”

            “No questions, Paprika. Just stay still,” Sirius barked as he folded the piece of paper as small as he could before shrinking it to the size of a tooth with his wand. He then reached into Paprika’s cleavage—making her squeak in the process—and stuffed the paper into the locket before saying, “Keep it there. Don’t take it out until I say so. Don’t ask, just keep it. OK?”

            “Y-Yes, Master.”

            After dismissing Paprika, Sirius left the room to booze up again, leaving the rest of the group continuing to chat about things before they decided they’ve outstayed their welcome. Bidding goodbye to the couple, Tonks, Severus and the Old Married Couple left, finally giving the duo some alone time.

            “Well, that was rather eventful,” Draco said as he massaged his scrawled hand.

            “Are you alright, love?” Remus asked as he leaned down to kiss and lick the wounds off his little Master’s hand. “Does it hurt badly?”

            “Stop babying me, Remy. It’s just a scratch.”

            “I should. I owe you for losing a bet on our babies’ gender, did I not?”

            “Well, since you put it that way,” Draco said in a sly tone as he lay his hands on the older man’s thighs, “How’s about I give you head?”

            Remus took a breath, his body already reacting from the touch on his thighs, “That’s…not exactly what I had in mind, Drake. I lost the bet, not you.”

            “Same difference. Are you sure you don’t want it?” Draco teased, running his hand along the thigh seductively.

            “W…Well, I…” Remus wanted to give in at first but shook his head and took Draco’s wrists. “No, Drake. You just had your check up. You shouldn’t…”

            “And that was like, what, forever ago? I want to taste you. Have your huge cock in my mouth. It’s been so long, Remy. And I’m sure that ‘little friend’ of yours agrees with me.”

            Remus gulped. He could let Draco do it and get relief or push Draco aside, which was what he knew he had to do because of the check up just now. Better safe than sorry, right? But then again, it had been so long since they did it. Their last sex a month ago resulted in a false alarm where Mrs. Sinistra thought that she couldn’t hear the children’s heartbeat, making Draco go almost in a panic frenzy, thinking their sexual act killed their babies, until Mrs. Sinistra found that the babies had only shifted to a position in Draco’s womb where she couldn’t pick up the sound that easily. It may have been a false alarm, but it scared the couple into abstinence for a month, and now Draco’s seductive caress on his thighs was starting to awaken his primal urges, he was having second thoughts about rejecting the young blonde.

            “Do you really want to…?”

            “I wouldn't be doing this if I didn’t, would I?” Draco said huskily, tracing his fingers lightly at the crotch.

            “Alright, but only if I return the favour first.”

            “What? I told you, it’s the same difference.”

            “No, it doesn’t. I lost the bet, I should return the favour first. That’s the way it is, my love, or this ‘little friend’ of mine is not going to come out.”

            Draco pouted and wanted to protest, but seeing Remus had that naughty but adamant face on, he knew he wasn’t going to balk. Remus took his sigh of defeat as a green light and turned him around, pulling him down on his hips. He ran one hand under Draco’s shirt, taking a sniff while running another hand along Draco’s round belly, caressing it gently. Slowly he reached around to take the young blonde’s pants, which was easily slipped off due to its nature as a maternity pants. Touching lightly at Draco’s awakening cock, he could feel him shiver a little at the contact.

            “Feel good?” Remus asked, licking Draco’s earlobe.

            “Mmh…Y-Yeah…” Draco whispered, his breathing starting to quicken from the sensation.

            Remus leaned in and kissed Draco’s neck, really missing the intimacy between them as he cupped the boy’s cock. Draco gasped silently at the contact, his feelings mutual with the half-wolf. Remus grinned and started rubbing up and down his cock, kissing Draco’s slender fair neck again and inhaling that intoxicating smell of his little beloved. Draco whined out in pleasure as his hands unconsciously gripped at Remus’ pants. Having those strong hands pumping him felt wonderfully good and he could feel the older man’s cock getting harder and bigger, pressing against his ass, showing that Remus was feeling good as well on the other end. Having a warm body next to his, Remus indeed felt like he was in heaven. He stroked harder, making the young blonde breath erratically.

            “How does it feel, my little Master, to have my hand on your cock?” Remus asked, his voice barely a whisper near Draco’s ear.

            “I…I…It feels…good…” Draco let his moans out as the familiar build-up in his pit of stomach came. “Oh, s…so…so good…Damn, I missed this so much…”

            “I’m glad you feel that,” the older man replied as his hand went under Draco’s shirt and lightly stroked his nipples in turn, making the boy tremble.

            “Y-Yes…Feels good…Feels so good…I think I’m gonna come…”

            “Then come, Draco, my lovely Master.”

            “Yes…Yes…” Draco’s voice went up a pitch higher as the hand that stroke his cock went even faster. “Yes…I’m coming…!!”

            So saying, Draco let his load out all over Remus’ hand as he moaned in his release. Being that they have been in abstinence for a month, the young blonde let loose quite a lot that was built up over the month, making his orgasm lasting longer than usual. After pumping him some more to milk him out, Remus took his hand away and licked the cum off his hand, savouring every drop as his other hand held him close to his chest, his fingers tracing along Draco’s pregnant belly. As his body spasms from his orgasms calmed down, Draco remembered the bulge of Remus’ aroused crotch pressing against his ass and reached down to tease it.

            “Someone’s not satisfied yet, I see.”

            “Yes, deeply unsatisfied,” Remus groaned, grounding back against Draco’s hand.

            “Then let me take care of that.”

            Draco slid off Remus’ lap as soon as he can feel his legs after his orgasm and started sucking first at the fabric that imprisoned the older man’s cock. While Remus ran his hand through Draco’s silky hair, Draco used his teeth to undo the zip of Remus’ pants and pulled him out. He was taken a little by surprise how big the man meat was. _Merlin’s beard!_ Draco thought. _Was it that long since we did it? We must’ve some Herculian willpower to hold out for so long!_

            “It can’t be helped, I suppose,” Remus said as he stroke Draco’s cheek, as if able to read Draco’s mind through his facial expression, “Remembering that false alarm was enough to scare my dick back into the pants.”

            “Suddenly unable to hear Abigail and Amarinth’s heartbeat _was_ a little scary,” Draco replied as he swallowed a little before taking the rod, kissing and sucking the tip.

            “Already decided on the names, I see.”

            “The kids did,” Draco smiled as he traced circles around the head of the cock. “It’s like they’re acting as my inner voice and bombarding subliminal messages in my head.”

            Remus took Draco’s chin and leaned over to kiss Draco, while Draco continued to stroke Remus’ exposed rod. After deepening the kiss and snogging until the need for air forced them apart, Remus let go and stroke Draco’s back lovingly.

            “I love you, Drake. You and our cubs.”

            “I love you too, Remy.”

            With that, Draco returned to give Remus head, enjoying the feel of Remus’ fingers stroking his hair and running them through it. He ran his tongue all over the length before relaxing his throat and tried to take in as much of him as possible. Remus bit his lip, really missing the feel of wet heat around his member. Draco hummed as he bobbed in and out, sucking and licking in intervals while his hand took the rest of the length that he couldn’t fit in his mouth, stroking it.

            “Ah…Just like that…Yes…” Remus breathed as he cupped the back of Draco’s head. “Gods, you’re really getting better at this.”

            Draco continued giving him head, remembering the first time he did this for Remus. It felt a little bit nostalgic to think that it was when they were in the early stages of their relationship as Young Master and slave, having secret escapades to the stables to give each other head that started this whole relationship. He remembered that back then, he couldn’t stand the idea of having someone’s dirty cock in his mouth, no matter how much he secretly yearned for Remus when he was in Lucius’ servitude, but now here he was, tasting every inch of that glorious man meat and loving it.

            “Ah…I’m gonna come soon,” Remus said. “Pull off quick.”

            Draco muffled his disagreement and sucked harder, telling him he wanted his load in his mouth. Against his better judgment, Remus came, unable to hold back anymore after feeling the vibration of Draco’s voice on his throbbing cock. Draco could taste the salty bitterness in his mouth he loved so much as Remus came, bathing the insides of his mouth with his seed. He was tempted to swallow all in but remembers Mrs. Sinistra and Severus’ warning about the possible after-effects on the child’s digestive system. He pulled out and held out the bottom of his shirt before opening his mouth to spit out the cum, some of them dribbling out of the corner of his lips.

            “Sorry, Drake,” Remus said as he wiped the excess cum off Draco’s lips with his own shirt. “I wanted to pull out but…”

            “It’s alright, Remy,” Draco replied as he crumpled the soiled shirt and took it off, careful not to spill it onto the floor before bundling it up and tossed it into the laundry basket. “I was the one who wanted it in my mouth. I just miss the taste, is all.”

            “Once our cubs are born, you can drink in as much as you want, love,” Remus said as he kissed his forehead, then saw Draco’s cock reawakened and pointing towards the ceiling and grinned, “Haven’t had enough yet, Drake?”

            “Not my fault your cock tasted so exquisite,” Draco pouted and looked away, trying unsuccessfully to hide his erection.

            “Oh?” Remus grinned deviously and made a motion to put himself away. “Well, if that’s what you believe, then I think my ‘little friend’ here should just go away…”

            “Don’t you bloody put that away, you tease! Who’s the Master here?!”

            Within seconds, and laughter and play fighting in between, clothes were strewn carelessly all over the floor, the door was locked and muffled moans and groans could be heard echoing out of Draco’s room.

\--:--

            Lucius sat outside the backyard musing about his loss as usual. Because of his loss of libido, he had to send away his slaves back to the business and Narcissa was giving him colder shoulders by the minute, spouting verbal abuse at him for not doing something about his “pencil rod”, as she put it, and always ending up screaming at each other’s neck and a poor servant becoming his punching bag whenever one was there in the wrong place at the wrong time.

            “Damn you, Snape!” Lucius cursed. “Damn you all to hell!”

            “Now that isn’t something a gentleman of elite class would say now, is it?”

            Lucius spun round to see a hooded man standing eerily quiet beside him, his robes looking almost as long and as tattered as a Dementor. Beside him stooped a fat and ugly mouse-like man who was dressed just as equally ragged. The blonde was sitting just right within the eye level of the hooded man and whatever light he had in the backyard was enough to enable him to see the man behind the hood.

            “Y…You!” Lucius jumped up. He took out his wand from his cane but was immediately disarmed using wandless magic by the hooded man, and the latter didn’t even have to lift a finger.

            “Ooh, that is a good one, Master,” the mouse-like man replied. “A very, very good one…”

            “Silence, Wormtail,” the hooded man snapped. “You weren’t given permission to speak.”

            Wormtail stooped back again, biting his lip to refrain from making a sound.

            “Wh…What do you want from me?” Lucius asked in a quivering voice. Never had he felt so afraid, so petrified by a person’s presence alone. Was this what all his victims felt whenever they were faced with Tom Marvolo Riddle, the man who murdered thousands in cold blood?

            “Oh, you definitely have something I need, Mr. Malfoy,” Riddle replied, grinning as he removed his hood, revealing his face. Despite his pale complexion, he was a handsome man with straight, long-flowing hair that reached almost to his waist, and he had haunting reddish-black eyes that reminded Lucius of snakes, and when he grinned, two tiny fangs protruded from the corner of his lips almost like a vampire.

            “You…You got the wrong family! I am not related to the Potter bloodline in any way! You must be mistaken with…”

            “Hush now, dear Mr. Malfoy. I know my lineage potions. I know you are not related to them, despite the fact that one of your predecessors _did_ marry a Potter—I’ve taken care of that—but this is not what I’m here for. You know by my works that I would never attack a pure-blood unless necessary.”

            “Th…Then what is it you want?”

            “I’m here to offer what _you_ want, my dear Mr. Malfoy. Of course, it will come with a price.”

            “What do you know about what I want?” Lucius looked at him skeptically.

            “Oh, I know you are a little lacking in…” Riddle chuckled icily as he came close to Lucius, running his finger along the blonde’s jaw-line, before suddenly gripping at the blonde’s crotch, making him gasp, “ _that_ area, if you get my drift. I can help you with that.”

            “And…And what makes you think I will blindly accept your offer and won’t go to the authorities to incriminate you?”

            “Oh, you won’t incriminate me. Not when I have your life on the line. Besides, I know deep down inside, you like my work. I’m ridding the world of all the impurities and blood traitors, cleansing the wizarding world through and through to make it a better place for the truly pure-blooded, and I know you agree with me that the less of these mongrels around, the better.”

            “That is coming from someone who is a half-blood himself,” Lucius muttered, but soon knew it was a bad move as he felt Riddle’s strong grip around his neck.

            “It was a mistake on my mother’s I intend to correct, but it will be done after I completed what destiny wills me to do. Don’t tempt your fate, Mr. Malfoy, or I wouldn’t be so generous to make you my offer again.”

            With that, Riddle threw him down to the ground. Lucius coughed and choked as he tried to regulate his breathing, the thought of dying there and then by this psychotic mass murderer’s hand crossing his mind.

            “Now, do you wish to receive my offer? Speak now, for I will not give you the courtesy of a second chance.”

            Lucius’ thoughts went to overdrive. This man who killed in such a manner that would make Jack the Ripper look like a wuss was there, offering him the chance to regain his libido back and to regain his sexual drive that he took pride in very much. He could accept it and be an accomplice to a murderer, or refuse it and spend the rest of his life being ridiculed by Narcissa and possibly by more people as time goes by. His close friends—if you could call people who go around currying your favour and indulging your every whim and fancy just to get a chance to put their hands into your money pockets friends—have already found out about his ‘predicament’ and chortling at him behind his back, and that was bringing down his self-esteeem faster than a bullet train. Or worse, if he refused, he might have his soul stripped from his body alive at this very second by this mad man before him, and he was the self-proclaimed man to live on the motto of survival for the fittest and that a Malfoy will get what he wants, by any means necessary.

            “What say you, dear Mr. Malfoy?”

            What else had he to lose?

            “Name your price, my liege.”


	55. Chapter 55

            The sun shone brightly into the condo window, illuminating the dark bedroom. Aaron blinked at the light and woke up, stretching his lazy bones.

            “Another day has come,” Aaron sighed to himself as he slowly got out of bed, checking to see if any owls have sent him the Daily Prophet or letters from home. As soon as he stepped out of his room, he was greeted by Harry who was lying on his couch in the living room reading The Quibbler.

            “Good God, Har! Have you ever heard of knocking?”

            “Good morning to you too.”

            It was a normal routine nowadays for Harry to just climb into his dorm through their connecting verandah every morning since Harry started his semester in Kym. As Aaron promised, Kym also had a system of sorting the students in four houses, namely Leprechaun, Selkie, Banshee and Changeling, based on the Irish mythological creatures. Leprechaun is almost like Gryffindor, but more towards cheeky intelligence attributes than chivalry, while Selkie is almost like a mirror image of Ravenclaw in terms of attributes. Changeling would more or less fit the criteria of a Hufflepuff, although less on the quiet, hardworking and diligent attitude and Banshee would be a less dark, less cunning and less discriminate version of Slytherin. At least unlike Gryffindor and Slytherin who view each other and everyone else as life-long enemies, the houses in Kym were more civilized to each other and often engage in healthy competitions, and sometimes even become best buds with each other, and unlike Hogwarts’ black, crinkled old Sorting Hat, Kym’s Sorting Hat was clean, tidy and white in colour, as if it was perpetually in a condition where it had been bought off the shelves a few hours after display, and it had a name to go with it: Mystic. It was also more talkative than Hogwarts’ Sorting Hat and would ask trick questions to further evaluate the person’s attribute more before sorting them into his/her house. But just as Hogwarts’ Sorting Hat said that Harry would’ve been suited to be in Slytherin, Mystic sorted Harry (after a rather long-winded chat) into Banshee, and he was welcomed heartily amongst his fellow Banshee classmates.

            “Do you really have to climb in through the verandah all the time?” Aaron said as he ruffled Harry’s hair. “We’re not exactly living on the ground floor or anything. What if you get hurt or worse? And there is such thing as a door, you know.”

            “But that’s the beauty of verandahs,” Harry grinned. “I get to come in without the hassle of waiting outside forever for you to open the door, and you don’t exactly want me to wake you up from your beauty sleep, do you?”

            “Good point. My blood sugar level will drop dramatically if I’m interrupted from my sleep. It’s not pretty,” Aaron chuckled, then looked around for any sign of the papers. “Is the Daily Prophet in yet?”

            “There, on the coffee table,” Harry replied, pointing without looking up from his Quibbler. “Lola just brought it in.”

            “Thanks.”

            Aaron and Harry were like peas and carrots as the days went by, almost always seen together except during lessons. Aaron was in Leprechaun and just the attributes of his house, he was cheeky but intelligent, and a master of elemental magic and Potions. If he were to be in Hogwarts and in Slytherin, he would’ve been the teacher’s pet, but as Harry had initially had his impression on, he was like a male version of Hermione, only a little better. During his stay at the school condominium, Aaron had introduced Harry to some of his closer friends, namely Judith Cecelia Light, who revealed to be in the same house as Harry; Rachel Yearne, a bespectacled 3rd year Selkie with bluish-black hair and small stature; and Rebecca Levi, a 3rd year redhead with a brighter shade of green than Harry in her eyes and was the same house as Aaron.

            “Aren’t you supposed to get ready?” Aaron asked as he picked up the Daily Prophet and scanned through the headlines. “We’re going down to Sidhe Street today with the girls, remember?”

            “The girls?” Harry asked, looking up with that tragic dreaded expression on his face. “You mean Judith is coming as well?”

            Despite being in the same house and in the same condo, Judith still behaved cold towards Harry and made no effort to be friends with him. In fact, whenever Aaron would try to get them together for their group activities, she would either refuse to join vehemently or would glare Harry down whatever chance she got, as if he was a stain that just wouldn’t go away, and always give him the silent treatment, refusing to even utter a word to him. Harry had tried to make the effort sometimes, but she would have none of that. She would turn away deliberately whenever he came her way and whenever they were in close proximity, she would either shoot cold, icy glares at him or shove him away, snapping at him to stay at least 3 feet away from her. She even slapped away sweet tidbits and stomped them to pieces right in front of everyone whenever Harry tried to give them to her as peace offerings, and showed no remorse in doing so, further making their relationship worse.

            Rachel and Rebecca, on the other hand, were in good terms with Harry. Both of them were Muggle-born like Aaron as well, and were always seen together just like Aaron and Harry. Rachel, just like the attribute of her house dictated, is a very studious girl who would always be seen with a book in her hand, believing in the motto that ‘All work and no play make Jane a good girl’. She strived to excel to the point of perfection, making it her lifelong mission to succeed in being the cleverest witch in the whole wizarding world, and viewed Aaron as her formidable rival. She claimed to know Hermione as well from her scouting through student magazines on gifted students and self-proclaimed herself to be Hermione’s next rival, despite the fact that she and Hermione had never met. Rebecca was more of a polar opposite of Rachel: out-going, optimistic, jovial and always have a way of cracking joke without making it sound like you have heard it a thousand times before. She claimed to have this sort of bubbly nature thanks to growing up with a house full of sisters, with only her father as the only male presence in the household. She had a red ribbon tied around her neck that she refused to take off except during baths as a symbol of a promise her fiancé made to return to marry her as soon as he returned from his Quidditch Cup Tournament Season, and it gave Harry almost the nostalgic feeling of Severus’ promise to keep in touch with him.

            “Oh, come now, Harry,” Aaron laughed as he punched Harry lightly on the knee. “She’s not gonna bite. Why are you so bloody afraid of her?”

            “Not yet anyway,” Harry rolled his eyes. “Seriously, what does she have against me? It’s like as if I’ve committed a crime against humanity or something. She’s treating me like I’m scum.”

            “You just don’t know her well enough. Give her time. She’ll warm up to you sooner than you think.”

            “Yeah, well, in my case, I’d rather if it’s later than sooner.”

            “Yoohoo~! Rise and shine, boys~! Sidhe Street awaits~!”

            Aaron and Harry chuckled as they heard the familiar yodeling of Rebecca outside Aaron’s door. If anyone could get them in the mood to get up and going, it was definitely the jovial little redhead.

            “Well, shall we?” Aaron jerked his head towards the direction of the door.

            “I’ll get dressed,” Harry said and was prepared to make a dash to the verandah to get to his own dorm when he felt the familiar tug at his collar.

            “Door, please, Har? Like everyone else?”

            Harry grinned sheepishly. Old habits die hard sometimes.

\--:--

            As soon as they were in Sidhe Street, Harry took a long whiff. It had been like forever since he walked around in a crowded area like this. The last time he was surrounded by people and the noise of a busy commercial area was with his Grandpa Albus and Severus when they were shopping in Hogsmeade and Honeydukes for items as per requested in the school list for the Kym school term. It felt good to have something that somewhat reminded the boy of home.

            “Ooh, check this out!” Rebecca squealed as she pointed at a pinkish gothic-lolita dress that was displayed in a shop that sold Muggle novelties, making it a big hit among the wizards and witches. “I didn’t think they would sell these. You should get this, Rach. You might look good in it.”

            “I have no interest in cosplay, thank you very much, Becka,” Rachel replied, her eyes glued to the book entitled ‘Trials and Tribulations of Modern Life Sorcery’. It was a wonder she could even navigate at all among the crowd with her face buried in those pages.

            “You should really stop cramming all that knowledge into that tiny head of yours,” Aaron chuckled as he got them some butterbeer to go. “A human brain can only hold so much.”

            “Technically we only used about 3% of our brain, Turunen. I’m trying to beat the odds.”

            “Well, the odds that you really need to beat right now are the odds of you getting a boyfriend, Rach,” Rebecca rolled her eyes in defeat. “There is more to life than numbers, figures, information and facts, you know.”

            “I am not going to waste my time swooning over men that are intellectually inferior to me.”

            “Whatever. You know, Percy,” Rebecca turned to Harry, being the only person amongst them to call Harry by his other name. “Maybe _you_ should get this for yourself.”

            “Hey!” Aaron protested, pulling Harry close to him. “Just because you can’t make Rach your personal Barbie doll, doesn’t mean you should make Harry one either!”

            “Come on, Percy!” Rebecca insisted with a determined sparkle in her eyes, ignoring Aaron. “You are too beautiful to be a boy. With this outfit and a bit of hair-elongating potion, you’d pass off as a cute girl anytime!”

            “Ah ha ha…” Harry chuckled awkwardly, “Well, I wouldn’t…”

            “Well, well, well, if it ain’t the high and mighty Judith Cecelia Light.”

            The quartet turned to see Judith surrounded by three bratty-looking boys. They had been trying to look for her ever since they found that she had left for the Sidhe Street trip without them, but they hadn’t expected to find her being cornered like this. Judith, on the other hand, looked like they were the last person she would want to see.

            “Uh-oh,” Aaron muttered. “Looks like we’ve got trouble.”

            “What do you want, Drenzel?” Judith scowled as she stood her ground, not wanting to be seen weak.

            “Nothing much, really,” one of the boys she addressed as Drenzel replied, giving her a jeering look. “Just to see how far you have fallen.”

            “Hey, get away from her,” Aaron approached the group, with Harry tailing behind him, trying to shield Judith from them, but Judith pushed him away harshly.

            “Mind your own business, Aaron! I can take care of myself!”

            “My, my,” Drenzel said as he stole a look at Aaron, regarding him a little, “you sure picked a rather interesting fellow, but probably nowhere near my dear Jared,” he smirked as he saw Judith’s shocked reaction and faked a surprise look, “Oh, you didn’t know? Your turf in the business is mine now, and so is your dear little boyfriend. Do you honestly think he genuinely liked you?”

            “So what if he’s your boyfriend now? I never really liked him anyway.”

            Harry was surprised at this revelation. _The business?_ he thought. _Was she in the business? Are those her colleagues?_

            “Of course you don’t. You like men who are of blood relations to you, of course. ‘Sides, you look just as nice being the way you are, going through life through your pussy.”

            “I said leave her alone!” Aaron growled as he pulled out his wand, aiming it at Drenzel. Harry could see the seething anger on the young man’s face, but was taken aback to see Judith disarming him with her own wand.

            “I told you I can take care of myself, Aaron! Cool it!” Judith scowled as she turned back to Drenzel. “You better watch your mouth, Drenzel. You have no idea who you’re talking to!”

            “Or what? You’ll tell your daddy on me?” Drenzel gave her a challenging look. “Your daddy got you into this mess, Light. And it’s probably good too. You were, after all, such a whore back in the business.”

            “What the fuck are you talking about?!”

            “Oh, like, I dunno, the times you were cozying up with Shade, and also those two fag slavers Onyx and Tyrone, and also the fact that you got the boss himself to give you a pussy-job and all. What? Your brother’s cock not enough for…”

            “That’s a lie! That’s a filthy lie!”

            Without warning, she jumped onto Drenzel and gave an all-out brawl, although she was soon outnumbered by Drenzel’s other two bratty friends and was starting to draw attention towards themselves. Harry, Rebecca and Rachel (who finally was distracted from her book) jumped in as well and used their wand to separate them before they dragged Judith away, making a run for it. The bratty trio gave chase until they were within the proximity of Kym’s Gamekeeper before they stopped and yelled profanities at them.

            “Just go back crying to your Master, Light, and probably give him a bedtime fuck or something!”

            Judith was tempted to turn back and whip out her wand but Aaron grabbed her hand and held her back, frowning.

            “Stop it, Judith! Don’t do that! Do you want to be expelled?”

            “Doesn’t give him the right to fucking insult me!!” Judith snapped at the young man, her face red with fury.

            “No, it doesn’t, but it doesn’t give you the right to go waving your wand all over the place. I don’t want you to get hurt and end up being revoked of your limited freedom.”

            Judith, after glaring long and hard at the bratty trio who walked off laughing and back at Aaron and Harry, scowled and gave one kick at Aaron’s shin before she stomped off ahead of everyone else. Aaron growled and gave chase, coming up behind her and dragged her into a secluded alley to talk. The girls could tell that they should not interfere with this and nudged at Harry to come away with them to give the two some space, but Harry, after seeing this new side of Judith, didn’t want to miss out the chance of finding out more about her. He made up an excuse, saying that he wanted to grab something to eat before sneaking over to the alley and hid in one corner to listen in to them.

            “Stop acting like a spoil brat that got her favorite toy taken away, Judith,” Harry could hear Aaron scolding Judith in a somewhat suppressed tone, like he was fighting the urge to yell at her. “You’re a 3rd year, for crying out loud.”

            “You told me not to act like a slave, to let loose and be myself, so I’m not,” Judith scolded back, slamming her fist against the wall she was pushed up against, “and now you’re implying me to act like one. Make up your damn mind, _Mudblood_!”

            “Do! Not! Call me that!” Aaron spoke through clenched teeth. “Within the school grounds, you may not be, but to the outside world, you are. You could have been whipped or caned for that display.”

            “I don’t care! I don’t fucking care! I never asked to be in this mess! And why shouldn’t I call you that, _Mudblood_? Since you said before I should let loose and be myself, I should be calling you that, shouldn’t I? Filthy little _Mudblood_.”

            “Do not try my patience, Judith,” Aaron pushed her closer against the wall, if that was even possible. “You will not like the results.”

            “What are you gonna do, Mudblood? You’re gonna beat me up? Rape me? I don’t give a fuck. That’s what I fucking do anyway. It’s my job after all.”

            Harry could tell by the tone that she was really pushing it, that she was really tempting fate, seeing that the dangerous tone Aaron gave her meant business. He wanted to step out to stop this fight but was surprised to see that instead of slapping her, Aaron press a hard, devouring kiss to Judith’s lips. Harry could tell from Judith’s facial expression that she was taken by surprise as well. The kiss was hard and demanding, and powerful enough to render any lover helpless. Harry couldn’t help blushing at upon seeing that kiss, involuntarily awakening his own primal urges as his mind’s eye was seeing Severus in Aaron’s place and himself in Judith’s place, kissing with abandon as they made out like the world was theirs and no other.

            Too bad the kiss didn’t result in what Harry had expected it to be. As soon as Aaron released his oral hold on Judith’s now red and swollen lips, she breathlessly slammed him against the other wall and slapped him hard before storming off. Harry quickly hid out of sight before he was caught spying and eavesdropping on them. As soon as she was out of sight, Harry took this as a cue to leave as well when he was stopped by a sad voice.

            “So you heard everything, huh, Har?”

            Harry cringed, awkward at being found. He waited until Aaron came up to him before looking down, embarrassed, “S…Sorry…I didn’t mean to…”

            “It’s alright, Har,” Aaron chuckled bitterly. “Maybe today is not a good day for this. I didn’t want to just kiss her, you know. I wanted to devour her. I was blinded by images of her in my bed…but I would never hurt her.”

            “I know. I can tell by the way you kissed her, you really love her.”

            “I suppose you’re curious as to what all of that was about.”

            “Yeah, but I have learned that unless told to, do not ask.”

            “You sound like you are familiar with…the business.”

            “Well…” Harry scratched his chin hesitantly, “I guess I should tell you my side of the story first, since I haven’t really been honest about you about my background life.”

            Aaron nodded in agreement before leading Harry to one of the nearby cafes to drink on it. They seated at somewhere at the far end of the shop and ordered the café’s famous tea and crumpets before Harry told Aaron everything, from the day he was raised by the Dursleys to the day he was sold to the business, then from the day he was bought over by Severus all the way till he was here in Kym.

            “And that’s the gist of it,” Harry said as he finished his tale, finishing his drink and asking for a refill for the umpteenth time. Aaron looked as if he had just heard the tale of the century.

            “Wow…I…I guess…I guess I don’t blame you for keeping me in the loop about your life.”

            “It’s alright. I’m fine with it. As long as I have the thought of being able to return to Severus’ arms after this whole ordeal is over, I’ll keep my faith on Severus and hold out for as long as it takes.”

            “Then I guess it's fair enough for me to tell you my side of the story. Can you keep it a secret from Rach and Becka? They know about Judith being in the business, but they don’t know anything further than that, and they’re better off not to.”

            “Only if you keep mine as well.”

            “You have my word,” Aaron nodded, took a sip of tea before he sighed and began, “well, first off, Judith here is the black sheep of the family. She is the odd one out with ties to half-bloods and Muggle-borns, people that her pure-blood family would never associate with. Her entire family hates her and they rather not have anything to do with her. Her father is always punishing her over the littlest things she does, possibly just because he hates her for being a blood-traitor.

            “Everyone was against her at that time, except Terran. He was her elder brother. He was always there for her and always took care of her, comforting her whenever things go wrong in her life. At first, Judith thought he truly cared for her, that he didn’t care who she was and loved her like an elder brother should. She was wrong.”

            “What do you mean, she was wrong?”

            “Turned out he didn’t really love her at all. He hated her just like everyone else, but at the same time he lusted over her because she was…vulnerable and…well, to him, beautiful. Not that I’m saying she isn’t, but he took it in the wrong sort of way. After he won over her trust, he…he made her his fuck toy.”

            Harry almost choked in his tea at upon hearing that.

            “Like I said, he’s just as sick as the rest of the family. Day after day, night after night, he’ll drag her down to his room and have his way with her. She knew no one would believe her, not even her own family, because of her being a blood-traitor, and he made her believe she was worthless and no one will ever save her. So she quietly submitted and became his little bitch, getting fucked almost every day and satisfy his every crazy sexual fantasy.”

            “But…But what does it have to do with her being in the business?”

            “You see, her father found out about their secret affair. He caught them doing it in the guestroom when Terran forgot to put an anti-unlock charm on the door. He grabbed her and threw her into the stables, making her starve for days at end, and when he finally let her out, he dragged her by the hair to the dog shed to make her watch as their…their pet dogs tore Terran’s body apart like meat.”

            “W…Why?” Harry breathed in shock. “I thought…I thought they hated Judith and would’ve done the worst on her…”

            “She thought the same way too, but they thought she seduced Terran to do it, and they were disappointed at Terran, thinking he was weak to fall for a blood-traitor’s temptation when he was the eldest and should be the strongest, so punished him as the family saw fit. But the worst wasn’t really over. They were so frustrated over Terran’s so-called ‘weakness’ that they didn’t realize they have no choice but to hand down their inheritance to her at the event of their death. They tried to find suitable inheritance to counter that but unfortunately, she was the only pure-blood in the family they have left because to their elitist mind, everyone else was what they call…‘tainted’.

            “They fretted over it for some time, until finally someone came in by the name of Bartemius ‘Barty’ Crouch Jr. Your Grandpa Albus might know him through his father, Barty Crouch Sr. who works in the Ministry of Magic, but basically he offered to take Judith as his wife-by-contract, so that technically, even though at the event of her parents’ death, she would be inheriting their fortune, Barty Crouch Jr. will be the one who has full control over the money as her ‘legal guardian’,” Aaron twisted his face in disgust at upon saying that, “but in reality, she is basically sold as a slave to him. She is studying right now only because her parents and her ‘husband’ allowed her to, but once the semester break begin, she would be dragged into the business to be trained and to serve that bastard’s every whim and fancy, even as far as entertaining other guests as well, thanks to the public property factor. Those guys that bothered her just now are probably her colleagues in the business.”

            Soon it was time to go back to Kym. All the students stopped and finished up whatever they were doing reluctantly and followed the Gamekeeper back to their carriages. Aaron and Harry caught the last carriage which can only hold two people, which was fine for them, and on the way back to Kym, Harry turned to ask Aaron the question he had been itching to ask.

            “How did you know Judith? Does that…have to do with the scar on your neck?”

            “You’re a rather observant little tyke, aren’t you?” Aaron chuckled humorously as he massaged his neck where the scar was. “Yeah, but she doesn’t know what was the real reason behind this scar. I told her it was because of an accident back at the Muggle world.”

            “So…what _did_ happen?”

            “Judith used to regularly show up at the park near my neighbourhood back then. She may not know it, but I have always observed her ever since the first time I saw her, sitting there like a lost puppy licking her wounds that her father inflicted on her. I pretended not to know about it at first and approached her out of sincere friendship. It was a rather rocky start, but she soon gained enough of my trust to tell me all her dark secrets. But when she stopped going to the park and when I got the offer letter to start anew in Kym, I knew I had to find out before it was too late.

            “Unfortunately, I _was_ too late. She was already sold to Barty Crouch Jr. and the papers were already signed for her to become his wife-by-contract as soon as she is of age. When she was at the business being trained, I barged into the house, demanding to make the agreement null and that she were to be released and be my wife instead, but I underestimated Barty Crouch Jr.’s powers. He may be the son of a Minister in the Ministry, but he was no couch potato either. I was hit with the Sectumsempra curse and barely managed to escape alive with all the wounds covering my body. All my wounds healed—I had to lie to the medi-wizards that it was a duel gone wrong—except the one on my neck, but it served me as a reminder how I at least tried my best.

            “Not a day goes by that I worry that sooner or later, Judith will become further and further away from until I could no longer save her from her plight. I told her to try and cut loose at school, to behave normally so that she could escape from the terrors back home, but she used her limited freedom given to her to make her reputation even worse. She is well-known as the Ice Queen and Rebel Beastess of Kym because of her attitude problem and her lack of anger management, due to the fact that viewed everyone else besides me as worthless trash who would never understand what she had been through. I am able to put up with her because I know about her and…well, Rach was able to because she could just wave it away with her books and Becka because she is just too bubbly for her own good.”

            “Then why does she hate me with such a vengeance?” Harry scratched his head in confusion. “We’ve only just met that day and she treated me like I was a plague or something.”

            “Maybe it takes a slave to know a slave,” Aaron shrugged. “One thing about her is that she has very sharp eyes. Maybe she knew right from the start that you were a slave, and it reminded her of her plight.”

            “I…I guess that explains it…but all I want is to be her friend.”

            “Give her time. She’ll pull through. In the meantime, I have to figure out a way to get her out of this predicament and have her as my own. I am willing to do anything, and I mean _anything_ , for her.”

            “Seeing that you cheated death for her, I believe you will. I’ll help if you want.”

            “Thanks, Har, but I think this is my fight. I’ll ask for help only when I truly need it.”

            Hearing that determined tone, Harry knew better than to push his luck. The rest of the journey back to Kym was spent in comfortable silence as they looked out of the window, each to their own thoughts. Before they knew it, they were soon within the school grounds and were on their way back to the condo. Aaron followed Harry to his dorm because he wanted to have another helping of jam tarts that Harry had made, but when he opened the door, he stopped at his tracks and smiled knowingly.

            “Maybe the jam tarts can wait. See you later, Har.”

            “Huh?” Harry was surprised at Aaron’s sudden change of mind, but when he turned around to see Severus sitting at the verandah of his dorm, he barely even realized Aaron had left as he squealed in delight and jumped to hug the older man.


	56. Chapter 56

            Severus and Harry walked hand in hand in the small woods that were situated behind the school. Unlike the Forbidden Forest in Hogwarts, it was open to anyone who wishes to have a little night outside the campus. On the contrary of being dark and gloomy, the woods were set in a way that it almost resembled a little like a dense park of sorts, with the occasional lit Irish park lamps in between, and as they walked on, they could see a few other couples hanging around there enjoying their own romantic rendezvous.

            “So, how was your day, pet?” Severus asked. “I came here as soon as I could get a break from teaching those dunderheads, with Albus’ permission, of course.”

            “It was…eventful,” Harry smiled at the thought so much revelations unfolded before him from just one school outing. “I promised Aaron I wouldn’t tell, so I’ll just have to leave it at that.”

            “Then I will not push the matter further. Getting on with your studies and friends, I presume?”

            “Yes, of course,” Harry giggled as he related to him all the classes he had attended prior to Severus’ visits. He claimed DADA and Potions class to be his favourite, despite the fact that he cried instead of laughed when the Boggart transformed into Lucius Malfoy, the man he currently feared the most, and that he boiled over his cauldron and almost caused a flood in the potions lab. He humorously laughed at himself for falling asleep in History of Magic not because he was bored of the subject, but because he had already learnt most of it with his private tutor and was dying for the teacher to just skip to the areas that he had not learnt yet, and also accidentally levitating the professor instead of the feather during Charms class, not to mention turning a ball into a bubble instead of an apple as per requested during Transfiguration class. Looking at living, moving roots during Herbology was no stranger to him, since he had seen those in the Head Gardener’s personal greenhouse back in the Snape manor, and learning how to fly a broomstick was probably the most exciting lesson of all.

            “You sure are enjoying your new life as a legitimate student, pet,” Severus chuckled at every tale he told. “I wonder if you would say the same thing if you were to study in Hogwarts.”

            “I might, but then again, I can’t, because I’d be in danger of Riddle’s advances.”

            “You’re true on that.”

            “By the way…how is the Riddle case going?” Harry looked up at him. “I’ve read about him in the Daily Prophet, but all I see is more people dying. Is he that hard to catch?”

            “With the exception of Tonks and Mad Eye Moody, I think the rest of the Auror team is pretty incompetent. They’re so high and mighty and overconfident with themselves that they underestimate Riddle’s powers too many a time. Riddle is always a step ahead of everyone and they don’t seem to even learn from that mistake.”

            “But…at least they’re trying their best, right?”

            “If you can call _that_ trying their best,” Severus rolled his eyes. “Getting more people killed instead of saved and sacrificing so much resources and manpower without even a solid plan.”

            “I’m sure they’re…” Harry wanted to defend them but was stopped with a finger on his lips.

            “Hush, pet. This is getting depressing. I’m here to enjoy my time with you, pet, not discuss about this. You just leave it all to me, OK?”

            Harry nodded before Severus put down his finger and replaced it with his own lips. They took each other’s cheeks in their hands and did the tongue dance that only they could synchronize so well with one another. There were some couples who saw them snogging each other and giggled, but they knew better than to kill the scene and left them to their own devices. By the time the need for air forced them apart, Harry could feel the familiar bulge pressed against his middle.

            “Getting a little ‘excited’, aren’t we?” Harry grinned.

            “More or less,” Severus chuckled, peppering kisses on Harry’s cheeks. “But let’s be adventurous. Let’s do it here.”

            “H…Here…?” Harry looked around, blushing. “B…But there are other people around here. We shouldn’t…”

            “Shush, pet. Listen carefully. What do you hear?”

            Harry kept quiet once more and strained to hear what Severus wanted him to hear. Sure enough, he could hear distant muffled moaning and groaning and whispered sweet nothings despite unable to see the owner of the voices. He thought he saw silhouettes of people behind the bushes, but the limited lighting of the woods was making them going in and out of visibility, yet the voices, though barely a whisper, rang in his ears, setting the boy off in fits of blushes.

            “See? I doubt they would mind at all,” Severus said in a smug voice. “There, we’re alright now.”

            So saying, the older man licked Harry’s neck where his yet-to-develop Adam’s apple supposed to be, making the boy shiver as he guided his hands to his pants. Harry, getting the cue, knelt down in front of him, opening his pants and pulled him out, but not before Severus guided him to a bench nearby and spread his legs to let him have access. Harry crawled over to him slowly and seductively, settling between the legs. He took the cock in his hand and began licking it, like a lollipop.

            “Mmh…You’re great as usual…” Severus moaned at the wet heat surrounding him as he stroke the boy’s hair.

            Harry smiled up at him, glad that he was enjoying him before he took him into his mouth, sucking just around the head and earning a hiss of pleasure from Severus.

            “Mmh~! You tease, pet. Please don’t hold out on me there.”

            Harry giggled as looked up at him, taking inch by inch until he had deep-throated him. He stayed there before bobbing in short little teases, and only pulled off whenever he needed a breath. Severus closed his eyes and ran his fingers through the boy’s hair, indulging himself and savouring the feeling of the wet heat around him and the tip of his cock hitting the back of his throat. The suction was starting to drive him crazy; it's like he could just send him into completion with that alone. Harry, on the other hand, was thoroughly enjoying the man meat in his mouth, loving the adult musky smell of it as he pulled off, licking from the tip to the root before licking the balls. His own erection was tenting his pants and his other hand snaked down to rub and massage it, moaning at the same time. Feeling the vibration of Harry’s voice, the older man tugged lightly at his hair to make him let go.

            “Enough, my pet. You will make me lose myself. Take off your pants.””

            “I…I thought you only wanted a blowjob…?” Harry asked, a slight surprised tone in his voice.

            “Do you really want it to be just a blowjob, pet?” Severus grinned as he teased the bulge behind the pants. Harry shivered.

            “No, of course not.”

            Harry stood up and pulled down his pants, his erection bobbing free. Severus smirked in approval at the sight, then took his waist to pull him closer, making him straddle his lap. As he whispered a lube spell to coat the insides of the boy, he leaned down to suck and nibble the tip of Harry’s erected cock.

            “Ah…Severus, please…” Harry whined, trembling in pleasure.

            Severus continued to lick and suck him as he thrust his fingers into Harry, lubing him up as much as possible but never really reaching where he knew he’d want him to reach. Harry tried to thrust down. Severus was so close to the spot but he never hit it, and it was driving the boy crazy as he clenched at Severus’ shoulder sleeves.

            “Please, _Master_ ,” Harry begged, calling him the title in the way he knew Severus liked to hear. “Please _fuck me_ …!”

            “Such a demanding slave. Very well. Here we go.”

            Satisfied that he made his little pet beg, he gripped Harry’s hips and pushed him down his length slowly all the way to the hilt, earning Harry’s ecstatic scream, although not too loud to alert everyone else present. The boy, after being away from Severus’ physical and emotional presence, could not wait. He felt it too slow and grabbed Severus’ shoulders again, thrusting all the way down, making the older man hiss.

            “Easy, pet,” Severus groaned. “Don’t want to cap me off too quickly now, do you?”

            Helping Harry to have a better hold on his shoulders, Severus carried him by the thighs and bobbed him up and down his cock, taking pride in his strength of being an adult and making use of Harry’s weight that was still next to nothing, ramming him deeper and deeper at a deliberate slow pace.

            “Please…Faster, Master…” Harry whined as he curled his arms around Severus’ neck and lay his head on the crook of it, breathing hard.

            “Wish granted, pet,” Severus replied as he moved faster, aligned with his thrusts. Whenever he thrust in, he brought Harry’s body down at the right moment and vice versa until he hit that spot he knew would drive his little lover crazy.

            “ _Yes! Yes, right there!_ ” Harry threw his head back and let out a strangled yell, trying his best not to scream out loud for the whole world to hear.

            Feeling that this position was a little too constricting, Severus carried Harry off the bench and lay him in missionary position on a soft patch of grass on the ground. Severus timed his thrusts just right, hitting the spot over and over again in a frenzy, while Harry grabbed at the grass, sweating and twitching as every nerve in his body was on fire. His words lost in translation as pleasure filled the every fibre of his being when the older man raised his hips a little to where he knew he could hit that spot the best and delved deep into him, over and over again, harder and faster. Harry could feel the imploding orgasm coming close, but he couldn’t warn him as his words came out in a babble. He tried to keep it in but that didn’t work either. One last strike onto his spot and he lost it completely, spurt after spurt coming onto Severus’ and his stomach.

            “Can’t hold it in, can we?” Severus smirked and stopped as he saw sees his lover drenching them both with his seed. He traced one finger lightly on the cum on his stomach and tasted it. “Just like a woman.”

            “It’s all…your fault…for making it…so good…” Harry panted, hiding his face in his hands.

            “Well, what are you going to do about me left hanging here then,” Severus purred, biting Harry’s earlobe lightly while he thrust into him, reminding him that his hard cock was still in him.

            “Do you want me to ride you again?”

            “Kiss me first, pet.”

            Harry obeyed, trying to sit up with shaky arms before wrapping them around Severus’ neck, kissing him passionately. He could feel his cock coming back to life a little, but it was still exhausted from coming so hard, while Severus’ cock in his ass seemed to have gotten even harder and bigger, if that was even possible.

            “Now go on all fours,” Severus whispered between kisses.

            “Yes, Master,” Harry whispered back as he did as he was told, taking a breath to compose himself.

            Severus repositioned his cock again, but this time as he thrusts, he leaned over to that special sensitive spot on Harry, which was somewhere between Harry’s shoulder-blades and nibbled and licked seductively, making Harry gasp and lose his footing for a moment and almost went down on his elbows. He forced himself to stay up as Severus helped support him by holding onto his waist.

            “It's OK, pet, let yourself feel. Let it go.”

            Harry nodded and let his top half of his body sprawled onto the grass beneath him, begging in his incoherent babble for Severus to fuck him. Severus complied as he soon gripped firmly on his hips and raised it a little to hit the right spot, assaulting it in almost perfect rhythm and speed while his mouth continued to work its magic on the sensitive spot. Pretty soon, Harry’s cock came back to life again, but his orgasm was coming sooner than expected, possibly because of Severus ramming his sweet spot so expertly.

            “I’m almost close…” Severus moaned, thrusting harder and faster.

            “Y..Yes, m…me too…come inside me…” Harry said as he felt his muscles clenching and his pit of the stomach tightening to the point of hurting. “Fill me up…”

            “Yes…Yes, I’m gonna—”

            His words caught in his throat as his last deep jab blew his load into his little lover long and hard. Severus let out short, abrupt gasps as he held onto the boy’s waist for support, while Harry’s orgasm followed suite, staining his thighs, knees and the grass beneath him. After calming down from his high, he magicked the mess away and the clothes back on them before carrying a limp noodle of a Harry bridal style.

            “Mmh, looks like someone had been thoroughly devoured through and through,” Severus grinned as he carried him out of the woods, ignoring the steadily increasing moans and groans of the other couples who enticed them to have this public sex in the first place.

            “N…Not funny, Sev…” Harry whispered, the lethargic effects of afterglow kicking in as his eyes started to glaze over.

            “You were very delicious, though,” Severus said as they were finally out of the woods, kissing his nose. “I don’t think I would need dinner tonight after such a good course of meal.”

            Harry tried to giggle but his body was screaming for him to just shut up and fall asleep.

            “Rest well, pet. You had a long day anyway.”

            Severus made sure there was no one around the corridors of the condo before walking down towards Harry’s dorm, with the sleeping, blushing Harry in his arm clutching onto his robe possessively. As he entered Harry’s dorm and lay him on the bed, he caressed and enjoyed his last few moments watching Harry’s chest rise and fall gently, silent snores escaping his luscious little lips.

            _Be_ _patient, my pet,_ Severus thought quietly. _Soon this will be all over and you will be in my arms again. I love you, Harry. So much…_

\--:--

            “How could you do this to me, Lucius?! How could you?!”

            Narcissa was trembling and crying her eyes out, surrounded by a pile of bodies and covered in their blood. There were other bodies strewn all over the floor of the manor as well and as the Aurors outside at the corridors checked them, they revealed to be the entire hired help of the manor, even the guards and some of Lucius’ trusted right-hand men, and some of Narcissa’s friends of the Secret Wives’ Club. If it weren’t for the incriminating bloody wand that she was holding, no one would’ve guessed that she could do such atrocious act.

            “Now, now, Cissy, please calm down,” Lucius said as he tried to pacify his wife who looked so bedraggled and drenched with tears and smeared blood on her face. “Put the wand down and we’ll talk.”

            “You did this to me!!” Narcissa screamed as she waved the wand dangerously at Lucius who had a few Aurors, Mad-Eye Moody included, standing guard behind him, wands at the ready. “You made me do this!! How could you?!”

            “You’re not talking straight, Cissy. Put the wand down and we can talk about this.”

            “No! No!! I will not stand for this!! It’s your fault!! It’s all your fault!!! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you~!!!”

            With a loud piercing crazed scream, Narcissa lunged forward towards Lucius with the wand, prepared to curse him before Lucius could whip out his wand. Mad-Eye Moody quickly used his Disarming spell on her before Kingsley Shacklebolt knocked her unconscious with a Bat-Bogey Hex. The other Aurors quickly went to work to process the crime scene as soon as the situation calmed down and was dealt with.

            “W…What will you do with her?” Lucius asked worriedly as some lady Aurors took Narcissa away.

            “With this kind of situation and the evidence around here, I don’t think any amount of your wealth is gonna save her now,” Moody replied sarcastically as he bagged the bloody wand as evidence. “It’ll be all up to the Ministry on how to deal with her now.”

            “I…I feel responsible for this,” Lucius sighed and massaged his temples. “Our…private life hasn’t been very…fruitful lately and she had been blaming me for not satisfying her enough. I just didn’t expect that she would be having an affair with…with that monster.”

            “I understand most of your hired help are either half-blood or Muggle-borns?” Kingsley asked him.

            “Yes, of course, but that doesn’t mean I treat them any less. But…But Cissy…she…I just never thought she would be corrupted by him and…”

            “It’s alright, we will get to the bottom of this,” another Auror named Rufus Scrimgeour came up to him with his wand and a vial. “Now we’d like to extract the memory of you witnessing this event as evidence to be brought to trial later on.”

            “Yes, yes, of course. By all means,” Lucius said as he pulled back his silver-blonde hair to reveal his temples. “Just please don’t be too hard on her. Don’t hurt her. She is my wife, after all.”

            “Can’t promise you that, Lucius,” Rufus replied as he used his wand to extract a strand of Lucius’ memory before placing it into the vial.

            As Lucius stood aside to let the Aurors do their work, he stole a look upstairs at a dark corner and could almost see the dark, malicious grin behind the shadows before he smirked inwardly himself.


	57. Chapter 57

            “No, I don’t know what you’re talking about. You can just stay in that bloody castle of gloom of yours.”

            Remus stopped in his tracks as he heard Sirius seemingly arguing with someone. He had just went down to the kitchen to get donuts and barbecue sauce (Draco’s recent food craving) and got himself a snack in the process when he heard the commotion in Sirius’ study. Against his better judgment, he put the food aside and peeked in to see he was talking to.

            To his shock, he saw that Sirius was actually entertaining a firecall and the person he was talking to was no other than Lucius Malfoy, his former Master! Sirius, as usual, had a bottle in his hand and was pacing up and down the room, while Lucius in the firecall looked like his usual cold and angry self. Luckily, Remus was standing at a position where he could not be seen by either of them, so he used that advantage to listen in some more.

            “I know you’re having him in your custody, Black,” Lucius growled. “Snape was supposed to have him, but now he doesn’t and will not tell whom he passed him on to, and I heard whisperings about my son coming in and out of your house. Give him to me and I will forget this conversation had ever taken place.”

            “And they say I’m the drunk one,” Sirius chortled as he took a swig off the bottle. “Listen here, Malfoy. You have no evidence whatsoever of me keeping your son here. Whatever you heard, you heard wrong. You know I would never have any interest in meddling with your family affairs, and besides if I really had him, you think I would keep him here and not tell you? What kind of a moron you think I am? Now buzz off!”

            “This is not over, Black! Once I get my things straightened out, I will come here for my son, and I’ll bring the whole cavalry with me!”

            “Yeah, yeah, go suck some balls, why don’t ya? And say hi to Cissy at Azkaban for me.”

            With that, Sirius ended the firecall without giving Lucius the chance to have the last say before taking another swig at the bottle. After a few gulps, he burped and turned towards the direction of where Remus was eavesdropping.

            “Hey, get outta there, mutt! I know you’re there!”

            Remus knew there was no point hiding. He stepped out of his position and glared at him, his fists clenched.

            “Are you planning to give Drake up to his father if he shows up here, Master Black?”

            “And what’s it to you?” Sirius cocked a brow, daring him to do anything stupid. “It’s not like he’s my son or anything. I never wanted him here in the first place.”

            “No, you will not touch him,” Remus stepped up closer to Sirius, in which Sirius shoved the half-wolf with the bottle.

            “Watch who you’re talking to, you half-breed mutt! Who are you to talk me down like that?”

            “I don’t care if you are the Grand Wizard Merlin himself; I will not let you hurt him! He is my Master and the mother of my cubs, not to mention your own nephew by blood!”

            “Unfortunately so. Never liked him anyway. If it weren’t for that bloody Snivellus, I wouldn’t be in this mess.”

            “Then honour your agreement with Master Snape at least!”

            “Oh, you got such cheek, don’t you? I swear Drake spoils you too much…”

            While they were arguing, Draco, on the other hand, was wondering why Remus took so long to get his craving snack. He got off his desk and went downstairs to investigate, only to see the snacks set aside on the table near the staircase, but no Remus in sight. He took one and nibbled at it before hearing muffled squabbles from Sirius’ study and went over to hear that it was a heated conversation between Sirius and Remus. He wanted to go over to stop it, but something they said stopped in his tracks.

            “I will send him away when that day comes.”

            _S…Send me away?_ Draco thought. _Remus_ _wants to send me away? Where?_

            “Oh, that’s rich. The day you send him away will be the day I’ll buy you a prostitute.”

            _Sirius is buying him a prostitute?_ Draco gasped inwardly, failing to notice the hint of sarcasm in Sirius’ voice.

            “Yeah, well, having a prostitute is probably better than having _him_ around!”

            _Oh god…_ Draco thought in horror, not knowing that the ‘him’ Remus meant was Lucius. _He doesn’t love me. He doesn’t care. He doesn’t see me as a person at all!_

            Against his better judgment, Draco sneaked out through the back door with angry tears in his eyes to the forest that was beyond the Black estate. He knew Sirius had once warned him never to set foot into that forest because it was beyond his borders and far from his jurisdiction of wealth, and that the forest was much worse than the Forbidden Forest in Hogwarts, but it could have been the usual drunken babble Sirius was so infamous for. Besides, the only thing he could think of was to get away from Remus and fast, and he couldn’t be bothered that he was running in his pregnant state. All he wanted to do right now was to escape, to not look at Remus’ face and not wanting to hear the brutal truth of Remus telling him that he preferred a woman, and a used woman at that, over him, and while he was running deeper and deeper into the forest, Remus and Sirius were still getting at each other’s throat.

            “One more word out of you, half-breed mutt, and I will make that damn firecall right now and make Lucius drag the both of you out by the balls!” Sirius growled and finished his drink. “Like I said, if it weren’t for Snivellus, I would’ve told on you guys just now and be rid of you both! Now get out of my study, and don’t you dare try to question or raise your voice at me!”

            Remus quickly dodged as Sirius threw the empty bottle at him to prove his point. Seeing that Sirius had spoken his mind, he thought it wise not to tempt fate anymore and nodded curtly when Sirius demanded him to get him another drink before leaving the room. After telling Paprika to get Sirius’ drink, he brought the snacks upstairs and was about to apologize for being late and come up with an excuse only to see that Draco was not at his desk. He initially assumed that Draco had gone to the bathroom, but after about 15 minutes of him not showing up, he started getting worried. It was when he checked the empty bathroom that he realized his little Master was gone.

            He ran all around the house, asking everyone, even Paprika, but there was no sign of him. The hired help made a double search and combed the whole Black estate but still they couldn’t find him. Draco was nowhere to be found and it was getting dark, and Remus started to feel the worse for him and the cubs. Again, Paprika, who was the only one who dared to scream and drag Sirius out of his drunken mess, forced the fool to get out of his study and begged him for help.

            “Oh, for fuck’s sake, can’t I have a little bit of peace and quiet without either of you messing it up?!”

            “Master Black, please!” Paprika whined in her usual thick Spanish accent. “Young Master Malfoy is missing! You _must_ help to find him, please~!”

            “No way am I helping to look for someone _he_ lost!” Sirius snapped, glaring harshly at Remus who was already looking like a mess over the loss of his little beloved.

            “Please, Master Black, please~!” Paprika begged, then leaned over to whisper in Sirius’ ear, “If you do this, I will give you an all-nighter. You haven’t done me in a very, _very_ long time, have you? I will give it to you, everything. I will strip off my title as personal slave and be your regular sex slave for one night. OK, Master Black?”

            Sirius hesitated as he looked at the pleading face of Paprika. He could just let Draco disappear and rot to hell for all he care and be done with his predicament of blackmail from Severus and possibly arrest from the Ministry for harbouring a fugitive, or he could forgo his pride and help look for Draco to be rewarded with full blown sex with his favourite slave. _Leave Drake to rot or wild sex tonight…? Leave Drake to rot or wild sex tonight…?_ Sirius’ two state of mind fought for dominance.

            Guess which one won.

\--:--

            Draco ran until he didn’t know where he was. He was surrounded by trees, trees and more trees and as he went deeper and deeper without realizing it. As Sirius had described, the trees around him look creepier and more sinister than Hogwarts’ Forbidden Forest, and its branches looked like they were reaching out to grab him. The blonde soon realized his stupidity, but he was still too proud and angry at Remus to call for help. He thought he heard something move to the side of him, but a wind blew, making the boy sneeze from the chill.

            “Ah, is the poor little thing getting sick?”

            Draco spun round to see a man in tattered clothes coming out. He had wild unkempt hair that was starting to bald, with sallow skin and hungry canine-looking eyes. In fact, his facial features looked almost canine and his teeth looked like they could tear a buffalo’s skin right off the animal itself. He was a little hunched and was moving on all fours despite being human. Draco cringed at the sight of him.

            “Who…Who are you…?”

            “You really should not be out here,” the man said in a deep, raspy voice as he circled him, licking his lips. “A bit older than I like but still you look…tasty and,” he sniffed at him for a second, “you are with cubs! Mmm…Three for the price of one! This is my lucky day.”

            “K-K-Keep away from me and my babies, you maniac!” Draco backed away as the man advanced slowly towards him, shaking like a leaf and almost tripped.

            “Don’t worry. I won't hurt you…much.”

            Finally it made Draco scream as he tried to make a run for it. The man gave chase, surprisingly moving faster running on all fours. The young blonde could almost swear that he could feel his breath at his heels. There had been a few times he could almost feel the man snapping his jaws at his legs like a hungry predator to its prey, but the final blow was dealt with the man swiping his hand at Draco’s ankles to make him fall. Luckily, the thick dead leaves on the ground lessen the impact, lest the fall caused a miscarriage.

            “Like I said, little thing,” the man said as a soft rumble escaped his throat. “You _really_ should not be out here.”

            The man was about to lunge down and take a bite off him when he suddenly went flying back against a tree by an impact. Draco looked up to see a huge black dog wrestling with him, both of them trying to deal damages on each other, while a pair of familiar, strong arms wrapped around him and brought him close to an even more familiar broad chest. He did not need to turn around to see to know that those arms and that chest belonged to Remus. Soon, the huge black dog subdued the man by putting its weight on his back and biting tightly at the nape of his neck, and both of them gave each other a sort of growling competition, which of course, the black dog didn’t balk.

            “Don’t you dare touch my mate and my cubs,” Remus growled as well, glaring down at the man.

            “Ah, a fellow wolf, even though you’re only half of it,” the man chuckled despite being in the mercy of the black dog’s teeth. “Such a pleasure to see you, kindred. Hard to come by. But as we both can see, he may have your scent and carrying your cubs, but he does not have your marking on his neck.”

            “Like that would stop you.”

            For a moment, Draco felt as if he was some sort of piece of meat fought over by two predators, but his heart told him to hold his tongue and let the scene unfold.

            “I was just looking for an afternoon snack, kindred. Why so serious?” the man tried to reason with Remus without getting himself decapitated. “You know our kind just as much as I do. We need to feed.”

            “Then go find some 9 year old to feed on, _kindred_ ,” Remus spat, pulling Draco closer and stroking his hair comfortingly, assuring him that he was in control of the situation now. “You know that despite these forests being your territory, once a wolf claims a mate, any attempts of hurting a wolf’s mate is to break a wolf’s pact and trespass a wolf’s territory. Right now, he is my mate and the ground he walks on is his territory, making it mine. Now leave now and I will forget you ever tried to hurt him. Stay and I will kill you.”

            A staring contest ensued between Remus and the man for a full 5 minutes, with growling in between, before the man managed to wriggle his way out of the black dog’s jaws and growl warningly at it, daring it to come closer. He then glared at Draco held close in Remus’ arms and spat at the ground.

            “Sentimental fools for kindred. Why do I even try?”

            With that, the man ran on all fours again back into the depths of the forest without turning back. Once the man was gone, the black dog stood up and slowly morphed to reveal a naked Sirius Black. Remus quickly took off his robes and tossed it over to Sirius to wear as he carried Draco bridal style.

            “S…Sirius…?” Draco breathed in shock, surprised to see an Animagus firsthand. “Wh…What are you doing here…? H…How did you find me…?”

            “Yeah, you’re welcome too, Drake,” Sirius rolled his eyes as he walked beside Remus while the latter used his nose to navigate their way out of the forest. “You’re lucky two noses are better than one to track you in this forest. The trees itself can mask the freshest of scents, and you don’t call me an Animagus for nothing. I thought I told you never to come in here, that in here is worse than being in the Forbidden Forest. How can you be so stupid? I swear you’ve got your father’s dumb blonde genes. Always gallivanting towards things that don’t concern you and always being the blundering fool who thinks the world revolves around you. Why do I even bother…”

            “Not my fault I can’t take you seriously because you are always talking drunk!” Draco snapped impatiently, cutting him off.

            “The _reason_ ,” Sirius scolded, ignoring that remark, “why this forest is beyond my jurisdiction is because my ancestors made a pact with the original werewolf pack to let them have access to this forest in exchange for the werewolf pack’s wealth they have accumulated before they were turned. The original werewolf pack were once noblemen and aristocrats who forgone their wealth to pursue a freer, more savage life, probably because they were tired of their successors always wanting to fight for their inheritance. They couldn’t find real werewolves to turn them because they were hard to find due to the Ministry in olden days who practiced the ‘shoot to kill’—as Muggles would put it—on them, so they donned themselves with full body suits of wolves’ skin from head to toe and started behaving like a friggin’ psycho. According to the Ancient Magic of Merlin, that was the true and only way to turn into a werewolf without having to be bitten by one. It may or may not work on Muggles, but for wizards and witches with full magical capabilities, it is very potent.”

            “How so?” Draco raised a brow, feeling a little out of sorts seeing this intellectual side of Sirius when he’s sober.

            “Without using your wand for a certain long period of time and nowhere to release all that power, the body will counteract by assimilating itself to its surroundings and adjust accordingly, and this case, they force the wolf’s skin to meld into their human bodies, giving them the attributes of lycanthropy. In regular days, they will have all the heightened senses of a wolf, then once the full moon appears every month, the magic in their body will force the wolf skin to surface out and make them go all bestial mode. Anywho, that’s how my ancestors had their wealth and became aristocrats. We mind our own business and stay out of their turf, and let them do whatever they want in their territory, and we get to keep their money. That’s how it works here, and thanks to you, young man, we almost broke the pact.”

            “Who was that man?”

            “That, my simpleton of a nephew, was a full-fledged werewolf. Not like the cheap rip-off of your little half-breed mutt over here. He is a genuine bitten cursed man who turns into a werewolf every full moon every month and derives pleasure in gobbling up little children like those big bad wolves in Muggle fairytales. Sad for him to stoop down so low though. Before he turned, he was an upright man. A bit of an eccentric, but an average citizen of the wizarding world nonetheless. He used to be known as Fenrir Greyback, an apothecary shop owner and more or less a good drinking buddy of mine.”

            “How did he end up becoming a werewolf?” Remus asked.

            “The bloke refused to listen to me when I told him not to come in here. He insisted on looking for this particular rare herb which he thought might be in this forest and out-drank me before sneaking off. I don’t know what happened to him in the forest after he left, but when I woke up with a killer hangover and saw Fenrir at my back porch all bloody and incoherent, I didn’t need to know the details. I knew there was nothing I could do to help him, so I squatted there and told him that I would give him a choice to either be taken to the Ministry to be sterilized and live the rest of his life as an outcast amongst the wizarding community or to live free in this forest without persecution and submit all his wealth to me. You can guess what he chose.”

            The rest of the way home was done in silence. As soon as they were out of the forest and into the Black estate, Remus quickly carried Draco upstairs to their room, with a relieved Paprika spouting a long line of Spanish chatter behind their wake. Sirius made sure they were settled in the room and watched while leaning against the doorframe as Remus lay Draco on bed.

            “Make sure your Master do as he is told, half-breed mutt,” Sirius barked before dragging Paprika to his side, “and stop giving me anymore fucking trouble, or else! You hear me? Good.”

            As soon as Sirius left with Paprika, Remus closed the door and watched the glaring Draco with awkward silence. He tried to offer Draco his snack, which was getting cold, but Draco slapped Remus hard on the cheek.

            “Wh…What was that for, Drake?”

            “You are going to send me away, are you?” Draco demanded.

            “What? What are you talking ab…” Remus’ words were cut off with another slap.

            “Don’t lie to me, slave!! After all we’ve done, after all we’ve been through, you are still going to leave me. I thought you loved me! You lied to me! You said you loved only me and will be there for me and our babies always, yet you were going to replace me with a prostitute! I let you fuck me, Remy! I let you fucking knock me up and you lied!!!”

            “I never lied to you. I want to be with you. I want to sleep next to you, bathe with you, make love to you,” Remus begged as he tried to reach over to stroke his hair, only to be slapped away. “I would never, ever abandon you, not even for all the Galleons in the world. Where did you get an idea like that?”

            “I heard you…I heard you talking to Sirius…” Draco spoke in a choked voice, tears pour freely out of his eyes. “I heard you saying…you want to send me away and that Sirius was…was going to buy…buy a prostitute for you…Why…? Why do you want to send me away? All I want…is for you to love me, want me, never leave me out of your sight…All I want…is for you not to send me away…ever…”

            Remus covered his mouth in shock. Had he been hearing their conversation and misunderstood the situation? He sighed inwardly in relief that it was not something very serious that caused Draco to run out on him.

            “H…How could you do this to me…? To us…? D…D…Don’t you want me anymore…? D…Don’t you want Abigail and Amarinth anymore…? Don’t you…love me anymore…?”

            “No, no, no, don’t say that,” Remus finally leaned forward to hug him, kissing him softly. “It’s all just a misunderstanding, my little Master. I would never send you away. I would never abandon you. I swore it since the day we went steady, remember, that I would always love you no matter what? I still do. Please believe me.”

            “I don’t wanna go…I’m sorry I called you ‘slave’…” Draco pleaded between kisses. “Please don’t send me away…Please don’t replace me with a prostitute, or any other women…I don’t wanna leave you…”

            “Then can I have you, right here, right now?”

            “Yes, yes, please. Be my Master this time. Anything. Please make me yours again.”

            Remus picked Draco’s feet up and lay him down properly on the bedroom. Devouring his lips, he moved down one of his hands to stroke Draco under his pants. Draco’s breath hitched as he felt Remus stroking him, tightening his grip on his sleeves to keep himself from losing grip of reality from Remus’ intoxicating kiss. The need for air force Remus to kiss down his jaw and pepper more on the young blonde’s neck, inhaling his beautiful scent.

            “My mate. My little Master. My love. All mine.”

            “Yes,” Draco breathed erratically at the older man manhandling him. “I’m all yours. Claim me, my true Master.”

            Hearing that, Remus nearly ripped both their clothes off. He looked down and breathed lustfully, staring down at the beautiful angel before him. He leaned down and licked and bit each nipple in turn, turning Draco into a whining heap of goo at the feeling of his wet heat on his buds. Remus trailed his tongue down Draco’s body, licking his navel before going down further and teased the tip of Draco’s erection with sharp flicks of his tongue, making the young blonde moan in a rather high pitch than he used to and twitch like he was being stabbed with a taser.

            “Please…Please…!” Draco begged, tears of lust clung at his eyelashes. “I want you, my Master…”

            “Hush, love, patience,” Remus replied as he flicked his tongue again at the young blonde’s erection. “Go on all fours for me, Drake.”

            Draco nodded and did as he was told, feeling the climbing anticipation. Remus rubbed his back as he spread his butt-cheeks apart, leaning in to taste him.

            “R-Remy!” Draco gasped at the feeling of his tongue on him, his body arching a little forward.

            “Come back here. I am not done.”

            The half-wolf pulled him back, licking and tasting before pushing his tongue through the tight muscles. Draco tried to hold on and not balk under the pleasure as he felt Remus’ tongue licking deep down into his orifice and the vibration of his moan on his ass. It was more than he could bear. His cock was coming to life almost in more ways than one, and it showed.

            “Like it?” Remus asked, leaning back to look at the clenching hole.

            “Mmh…Yes…” Draco replied, a tint of pink littered his fair cheeks.

            “Are you ready?”

            “Always for you, Remy.”

            Remus reached over to the bedside table to get their usual lube oil which was snuck over by Paprika from Sirius’ room. It was slightly stiffer than a regular oil to ensure better lubrication and easier penetration. He dipped his fingers in, coating them generously before gently pushing them inside the young blonde, hissing pleasurably at the tight heat that clenched around them. Hearing Draco moan and feeling him twitch told him he wanted more, so he entered the second and the third together, lubing him up really good before coating his own hard rod with the rest and rolled over on his back.

            “I want you to ride me, Drake, like you used to.”

            “I…I dunno…” Draco said as he straddled Remus’ hips, a little unsure about it. “Mrs. Sinistra said to try and refrain from letting me be on top…”

            “It’s OK, love. I’ll help you support your weight. Just do what comes natural.”

            “O…OK…”

            With that, Draco rode him as he was told, guiding Remus’ cock to his ass and lowers himself slowly, letting out a strangled moan as he felt himself being filled. As Remus helped him down by holding onto his hips, Draco pushed all the way to the hilt and waited for himself to adjust before slowly started to bob up and down, aiming at the spot where he knew would send him straight to 7th Heaven and back.

            “Slowly, love,” Remus breathed as his one hand reached to stroke Draco’s cock while the other cupped Draco’s pregnant belly using a bit of his superhuman strength to support the weight and not let it bounce too much. “Does it feel good to ride me?”

            “Mmh…!” Draco groaned at the touch of Remus’ hand on his boyhood, moving a little bit faster. “Y-Y-Yes…!”

            “You feel so tight…Yes, harder, Draco…! So good, mate, so good…!”

            A blissful warmth filled his heart as the blonde heard his beloved calling him ‘mate’. It was almost as intimate as being called his ‘wife’, and it turned him on so much more. Finally, after some maneuvering angle, Draco hits the spot just right. Picking up his speed and assaults, he let out moan after moan that got louder by the moment, and it was more than Remus could bear. In a flash, Remus supported Draco and rolled him into missionary position, fucking him as hard and deep as he dared, careful not to harm the cubs, hitting the spot over and over again and rendering the blonde into a pleasured, ecstatic drooling mess.

            “Yes, yes, yes~!!! Oh, REMUS~!!!” Draco screamed, tossing his head from side to side as the pleasure jolted his every senses.

            “I’m going to come all over you, cover you with my seed,” Remus groaned as he pulled Draco against him again and again, “then I am fuck you again and again until you can’t remember your own name!”

            “Yes, yes, do whatever you want with me!” Draco screamed as he tried to meet up and align with his thrusts but the pleasure was too much for him to focus. “I’m all yours, Remy! Please don’t stop loving me!”

            “I will never stop loving you, my mate,” Remus pulled him up into a sitting position, pulling him back down on him harder and faster. “Come for me, Drake, scream your pleasure.”

            Draco continued to scream, letting his voice loose as he let every fiber of his being take all the pleasure his beloved half-wolf could give him. Without even having the chance to touch himself, his cock sprayed his seed all over the both of them, making the boy scream Remus’ name. Remus followed after as he quickly pulled out and pumped himself as he pushed Draco down gently back onto the bed, bathing the boy with his seed as he kissed him. Draco followed Remus’ pace as he kissed him back, his arms wrapped tenderly around his lover’s neck as he let his last tremors subside. The kisses slowly got gentler and softer as they came down from their high.

            “Will you promise me not to send me away?” Draco asked as he cupped Remus’ cheek. “Promise you won’t abandon me and the babies?”

            “I wouldn’t even think of it. I swear it on my parents’ grave,” Remus touched foreheads with him before he lay with him side by side, not caring about the mess of their cum on each other. “Please believe me. It was just a misunderstanding. I would never dream of sending you away and replace you with a dirty whore.”

            “Then…Then what was that all about?”

            “I’ll tell you everything, but, since you’ve given me the power of a Master for the day…” Remus grinned naughtily as he licked his lips, “we are not leaving the bed until dinner, you hear me? That is an order from your ‘Master’.”

            Draco pouted and punched at Remus playfully, almost regretting his actions before, but true to his word, he made no attempts to leave the bed.

\--:--

            Judith stood before the gravestone and laid a few white carnations on it. On the gravestone carved the name ‘Terran Chaney Light: Brother and Lover’ and the date of birth and date of death below the name. Christmas was coming soon and if she didn’t sneak out from school now to visit his grave, she wouldn’t get another chance until after the hols, and that’s even if she had the strength to travel this far to get here after what the business and her ‘husband’ and his friends would do to her.

            She sighed and sat beside the gravestone, leaning against it and occasionally pouring a little whisky on it as she drank. Years of being under her brother’s ‘tutelage’ gave her a rather good tolerance for alcohol, and she knew her brother had a special liking for whiskey shots. The day she witness Terran’s mutilating death was the day she knew her life was turning in for the worse, and it was a miracle that she was able to sneak out some of his remains, including his half-chewed head, from the dogs to give him a more or less decent funeral, well, if you could call asking a gravedigger to help carve the gravestone with whatever money she had on hand and dig a crappy hole for his remains before paying the rest of his service using her body as a decent funeral.

            “Such sad, sad way to go, isn’t it, your brother?”

            Judith scowled as she turned to look at a hooded man standing beside her. She couldn’t see his face because the sky was getting dark and it was starting to rain. The hooded man waved a wand he took out from his snakehead walking cane to create a shield for both of them to protect them from getting wet.

            “What’s it to you? You knew my brother?” Judith demanded, her blood-red ruby eyes shooting him a scrutinizing glare.

            “Not personally, but by reputation, yes,” the hooded man chuckled as he saw Judith’s pained facial expression. “Still, isn’t it rather…unusual to bury the very person who made you who you are now and visit his grave so religiously?”

            “You won’t understand,” Judith replied as she laid her head against the top of the gravestone, tracing her finger on the name. “His love for me may be false, but at least he loved me while it lasted. He was all I got before Barty Jr. came into the picture. You’ll never understand the feeling.”

            “My apologies. Maybe it is something I may not understand, but what I do understand is that you seem to have an eyesore within your midst, do you not?”

            Judith looked up at him questioningly, wondering if he was saying what she thought he was saying.

            “Yes, and I know you wish he would go away and never show his face again, do you not?”

            Judith looked away, keeping silent but her eyes told him he spoke the truth.

            “Here, take this,” the hooded man said as he took something out of his robe pocket and handed it to Judith. She took it and examined that it was a small bottle filled with pinkish-blue liquid that had sparkling bubbles floating up to the surface. When she looked back up with another questioning look, the hooded man continued, “Give this to his lover when he comes to your school to visit him and I can promise you, you will never see him ever again.”

            “It’s…not poison, is it? I want him gone, but I am above killing.”

            “Oh, don’t worry, child. It’s not poison. It’s something much, much better. You can trust me on that.”

            As Judith continued to stare hesitantly at the bottle, the hooded man turned to leave, chuckling quietly to himself as he moved away a stray blonde fringe from his face.


	58. Chapter 58

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be warned, this chapter will be quite long and has very, very, VERY heavy sexin’! Read at your own risk of loss of blood through your nose

            Severus walked as fast as he could down the school grounds through the snow towards the school condominium. Cold white clouds of mist escaped from his slightly blue lips as he brought his small luggage on tow. He prayed that he would not be too late to see his little beloved, although technically, he was.

            It was about 3 days after Christmas and only then that poor Severus was able to get away to go and visit Harry. He had read in the Kym semester periods that during December, they will have a two weeks holiday starting a day before Christmas Eve and he would’ve taken the leave for that week if it weren’t for the fact that he had to finish a thesis that could not wait and marking some last minute students’ assignment _and_ being badgered by 5 customers left and right to produce potions for them at an inhuman deadline. By the time he was done with everything, he was seen in the mansion uncharacteristically rushing up and down, helter-skelter to pack his luggage (yelling at Neville and Colin in the process to hurry up) before running out of the house and into the carriage, almost forgetting his winter robes and his shoes in the process.

            “Hello, Mr. Snape.”

            Severus was greeted by Judith who was looking up at him nonchalantly while standing at the entrance of the school condo. He remembered seeing her briefly during the day Harry enrolled into Kym, and had seen her another time during his visit to see Harry after the boy’s school outing. She was obviously waiting for someone to pick her up, judging by the luggage she was bringing. Severus sighed inwardly at the sight of it, feeling that at least he was not the only one who had missed Christmas.

            “Hello. Sorry, I cannot chat right now. I have to…”

            “I wouldn’t go in there if I were you.”

            Severus stopped at his tracks and turned to Judith who looked as if that comment had never been spoken. He came up to her and looked at her warily.

            “What do you mean?”

            “Potter-Dumbledore is not exactly in the best of moods right now. Not only you missed Christmas with him, but apparently he got the news from his grandfather on Christmas Eve saying that he couldn’t go over for Christmas because he was busy, not to mention Aaron, Rach and Becka had left for the Christmas hols without as much as leaving a gift for him. I’d say he’s feeling rather abandoned right now.”

            Severus bit his lip. He understood that Albus couldn’t have him over for Christmas because he was technically still in hiding and that Albus was heading the case on recapturing Riddle and relocating the Potters to safe houses, but his friends not having the courtesy to give him Christmas gifts? That was a bit too much, wasn’t it?

            “Then why did you not spend Christmas with him or given him a gift? Surely you must, since you’re here.”

            “I was…away for a while on a personal errand,” Judith replied quietly. “By the time I got back with his gift, he didn’t want to see anyone. But I suppose it’s a blessing in disguise, running into you.”

            “What do you mean?” Severus raised a curious brow.

            Judith smiled wistfully before fishing out a small bottle of pinkish-blue bubbly liquid and passed it to Severus. One look at the colour and Severus knew what it was.

            “Is this…?”

            “Something to ‘keep your spirits up’, if you know what I mean. I got it on my way back from my personal errand as a gift for him originally because I know you’d be showing up to see him sooner or later. The apothecary owner claims it works wonders. I’m sure Potter-Dumbledore will be in a good mood in no time.”

            Severus fingered the bottle and smiled gratuitously before patting her head.

            “Thank you, young lady. You have been a wonderful friend. Harry is lucky to have known you.”

            “My pleasure.”

            As she watched Severus leave with the potion in his robes pocket, she unzipped her luggage just a little bit to steal a look at the colourful, nicely wrapped presents, all of them labeled ‘To Harry, Merry Christmas!’ and smirked to herself quietly.

\--:--

            “Get the fuck out of here! I hate you!”

            Severus took a deep breath to try and compose himself. Half of him felt bad because he knew he kind of deserved this, but half of him felt upset because he did not come all the way from London to Ireland just to be given this treatment.

            “Harry, please, be reasonable. I’m sorry I’m late for Christmas, but…”

            “What am I to you?” Harry demanded, his eyes sodden with tears.

            “Let’s not start, pet. You’ve known my feelings for you…”

            “You have never made them clear! Ever since you freed me, nothing seemed to be the same anymore! We cannot be intimate in front of people because I am still sexually under-aged, we meet almost every once in a blue moon, then this Riddle fellow appears and we have to be apart again! I’m sick and tired of this! What am I to you, really?”

            Severus sighed as he tried to hold Harry to calm him down, only to be pushed away tearfully. Judith was right about him not being the best of moods, but he had not expected it to hit him so hard. All this shenanigans about Riddle and the seclusion and the murders in the newspapers, plus this new lifestyle away from his familiar home and disappointment from friends whom he thought they cared, must’ve taken a toll on him.

            “Just sell me back to the business and be done with it! It would be easier on both of us, and Grandpa Albus would not have to be concerned about my welfare ever again! You wouldn’t have to listen to my emotions! Better yet, just offer me as bait to that Riddle fellow and be done with it…”

            That blew off Severus’ circuits as he shot up to him and took the boy by the shoulders, shaking him, his face strewn with emotions no one, not even Harry, had ever seen.

            “No! I will not sell you, nor will I send you to your grave! I told you before you are mine! Do you think I want you to return to a life I strive so hard to get you out from? Do you think me so cruel to feed you to the lions after rescuing you from them? I will never let you go! Never!!” Severus leaned his head against the crook of Harry’s neck and panted heavily after yelling so much in one breath. “Do you not still understand that I love you?! You can rant and rave and make me feel sorry for myself all you want, but I will never let you go, you hear me?!”

            Harry was stunned. It was like time was standing still and forgot to move as he stood there in Severus’ arms. He had seen him angry before, but never this angry. Had he been a little too much in his outburst? Grandpa Albus couldn’t spend Christmas with him, Aaron left off a day before the hols and Rachel and Rebecca followed suite a few days later, all without leaving a present behind, coupled with the fact that he was still not in the best of terms with Judith and getting more and more snide and cynical treatments from her, but Severus, late as he may be, showed up to spend the hols with him. He came all the way here and this was what he gave him? Harry felt so ashamed of himself after getting that sort of wake-up call from his beloved.

            “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry, Severus…” Harry sobbed in his arms, gripping his robes tightly, not wanting to let go. “Please don’t go away…I didn’t mean to…I just…I’m just so frustrated…with Grandpa Albus not taking me home for Christmas so that I can see you…Aaron, Rach and Becka gone without a word…and you not showing up…I thought…I thought…”

            “Hush, pet,” Severus said as he caressed Harry’s head. “It’s alright. I know you’re upset. I’m here now. I’m sorry too; I shouldn’t have yelled at you. It’s Christmas after all.”

            “Please don’t leave me…Don’t leave me alone…I’m sorry…”

            “Shh, shh, shh, it’s fine, don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere. I’m spending the rest of the Christmas hols with you, I promise.”

            “Have…Have you eaten yet?” Harry, after calming down and wiping away his tears, looked up to him and asked.

            “No, unfortunately,” Severus chuckled as he helped to wipe away stray tears that fell down the boy’s cheeks. “I took a train, a carriage, flew a broom and took another carriage all the way to get here, and didn’t have time to eat.”

            “Then I’ll make a firecall to the condo cafeteria and asked the hired help for some food then. They still have got a lot of leftovers from the pre-Christmas dinner we had the day before the hols started.”

            “Yes, please. I’m starved.”

            Soon, the couple found themselves in the dining room eating nicely warmed Christmas dinner leftovers under the romantic light of the candles. Harry was back again on Severus’ lap like the old days eating off his hand and feeding him at the same time, and Severus was enjoying the feel of Harry sitting on him with his head leaned against the crook of his neck. It felt so good to enjoy each other’s company after so many months apart and wished that this moment would never end.

            “How is Draco?” Harry asked as he popped a cherry tomato into his mouth. “I hope his babies are doing fine.”

            “They are fine, both mother and children,” Severus replied, smiling. “A little bit of hormonal drama in between, but overall, he, the children and Remus are all in perfect health. They’ve even decided on names.”

            “Really? What are they?”

            “Both the children are confirmed to be girls, so Drake decided on Abigail and Amarinth.”

            “That’s nice, very fitting,” Harry giggled before twiddling his thumbs. “Do you think…we could have children of our own as well, Severus?”

            “Once you are of adult age and once we settled down, yes, of course,” Severus kissed the boy’s forehead. “You can have all the children you want, if you are willing to accept the consequences.”

            “The bloating, the food cravings, the mood swings, the constant bathroom breaks, the swelling feet, the aching back and the birth pangs? Yes, that and more, because I know I’ll be carrying your child.”

            “You have no idea how sexy that sounds, Harry.”

            So saying, Severus leaned over to kiss him, his fingers caressing his cheek tenderly. Harry kissed him back, opening his mouth for Severus to gain more access before reaching out a hand to stroke the older man’s chest that hid behind the fabric. Holding him close, Severus slowly kissed him deeper as his tongue explored every crevice of Harry’s mouth inside, making the boy moan in his mouth. If it weren’t for their need for air that forced them apart, they would’ve kissed like that all night.

            “Wait, pet, I’ve brought something for you,” Severus said as he accio-ed his duffel bag and levitated its content. “It’s your favourite. Merry Christmas, Harry.”

            “Nummy~!” Harry giggled, purposely using his limited vocabulary as he saw what Severus had for him: a bottle of Cabaret Sauvignon wine, slightly chilled and at the right age, tied in pinkish-red ribbon at the neck.

            “I got this at Kings Cross Station for a value offer. And,” Severus fished out the bottle he got from Judith and waved it at Harry, “all is not lost. Here’s a Christmas gift from your friend.”

            “Huh? What is this? Which friend?” Harry asked as he fingered the bottle curiously.

            “The girl with red ruby eyes, the one who had really long hair and a chill about her. She said she knew she couldn’t approach you because of you being upset and knew I was coming, so she passed it to me. As for what this bottle is, it’s a lust potion. Made right and it can have a very strong effect. I’d recognize that colour anywhere.”

            “Oh…And I thought…” Harry stopped at his words, deciding against revealing Judith. It would probably be wise to keep Severus out of the dark about all the unfavourable treatments he had been getting from her, or else he would have shown her a thing or two and that would make things even worse between them.

            “You thought what? That your friends didn’t care?” Severus asked, assuming it was what Harry wanted to say. “Well, at least she did. Let’s give this a try, shall we?”

            “You sure you’re up for it? Might be too strong for you.”

            “Oh, you have no idea how much I wanted to make something like this for you. I am going to drive you crazy soon.”

            Thus, Severus uncorked the bottle using a spell before pouring the content of the bottle into wine, shaking it to mix it thoroughly. Then he poured two glasses and clinked glasses with Harry before doing a bottoms up. They carried on for a while, chatting and giggling about things in general before they soon felt the effects of the potion mixed in the wine.

            “Mmm…” Harry shrugged slightly to get rid of the cricks. “I feel…kinda tingly, like there’s mini fireworks going on in my body right now.”

            “Mmh, so do I, pet,” Severus said as he nuzzled noses with Harry. “That’s saying the potion is starting to work. Let’s not waste it now, shall we?”

            Severus quickly carried Harry bridal style towards the couch of the living room and set him down, unable to wait anymore to get to the bedroom. They threw away their clothes in a careless heap, not caring where it landed, and started snogging each other as their hands roamed each other’s bare body, savouring the touch of warm skin on their fingers. As Harry’s hand traced its way downwards, Severus snaked upwards to pinch both Harry’s nipples, making the boy moan in the kiss as he rested his hand on Severus’ cock.

            “Mmh…You like my cock, don’t you, Harry?” Severus smirked as he peppered kisses on the boy’s forehead.

            “Yes, Sev…” Harry replied, his face flushed.

            “Well then,” Severus sat up and lay back on the couch, then pushed Harry’s head down a little as a gesture, “you can have it.”

            Harry nodded and crawled between Severus’ legs, taking him immediately in his mouth, swallowing down to the root. Severus hissed at the contact. This was the first time in a long time he was given a decent blowjob, and he was glad he got it from his little beloved.

            “Mmh~! Oh yes, you’re good…”

            Harry hummed in reply as he bobbed up and down, tasting him and looking up at him erotically, making Severus grip onto the sides of the couch and his cock harder.

            “Mmh, you look so sexy, Harry. It feels so good…”

            “Thank you, but…” Harry pulled and licked him, blushing, “I’ve…uh…I’ve gotten hard as well just blowing you.”

            “Really now? I’ve got just the thing to handle that.”

            Without warning, Severus picked Harry up and guided him into a 69 position, with Harry on top. Harry gasped in surprise at first, but then giggled and went back to his business. Severus relaxed his throat and took him whole, teasing the tip of the cock with his tongue, and that made Harry cry out, letting go of Severus. The older man chuckled inwardly before letting go as well.

            “I don’t recall telling you to stop, pet,” Severus said with a pretend stern voice, nipping lightly at the head of the boy’s cock.

            “I…I’m trying…It’s…just so good…” Harry whined as he licked and sucked on the tip.

            Feeling Harry’s mouth and tongue on his member, Severus took him back into his mouth, sucking and licking the boyhood hungrily, occasionally licking the balls, rolling it around his tongue. Harry moaned around him and he could feel the vibration of his voice on him, making him moan as well. He continued to suck him while trying to hold back his own impending orgasm as long as he can, while Harry bobbed fast, Severus’ blowjob creating so much pleasure on his cock that he just couldn’t stop moaning. In turn, Severus’ cock throbbed real hard, begging for release as he was bombarded with the vibration of Harry’s moans and the bobbing.

            “I’m…I’m close, Harry…!”

            Harry responded by taking him down the root, letting him know he wanted Severus to come in his mouth. Severus held Harry down to the hilt, allowing him to come in his mouth as well as he let loose his load into Harry’s, unable to hold back any longer. It took Harry a second longer but he did come, after swallowing Severus’ load. He leaned up slowly, panting, and his legs shaking. Severus waited until his tremors subsided before helping Harry to get off him carefully.

            “You taste wonderful as always, Harry,” Severus panted as he kissed Harry on the lips, tasting a little bit of himself.

            “Yes, so do you,” Harry kissed back, tasting himself as well. “I…I think I’m getting a little hard again.”

            “It’s the effects of the lust potion. It can allow us to go round after round.”

            “How…How long will the effect last anyway?” Harry asked, blushing as he looked down to see that his cock was starting to reawaken again.

            “I’m not sure, to be honest,” Severus admitted. “It depends on the metabolism of the body and how strong your stamina is, and how much your body can expel the potion after exhausting it. There have been cases where someone had gone almost a week nonstop.”

            “A week?! That’ll kill my ass for sure!!”

            “Ah, but the lust potion will dull the pain, slightly increase stamina and greatly amplify the pleasure. You won’t even feel it until it completely wears off.”

            “You make it sound like it’s the most interesting science project ever,” Harry pouted in a pretend-angry tone.

            “Yes, of course,” Severus said as he wrapped the boy’s legs around his waist before carrying him up. “ _You_ are my interesting little science project.”

            Severus carried Harry all the way to the bedroom and dropped the giggling boy onto the bed. Harry breathed in lust as he saw Severus’ rod starting to soar as well and he held out his arms, spreading his legs as he welcomed him.

            “Prove to me that you love me, Sev,” Harry said huskily. “Make love to me.”

            “I will,” Severus said as he crawled up the bed into Harry’s arms. “I most definitely will.”

            With that, he leaned down to kiss Harry deeply, running his hands through his hair. Harry kissed back, wrapping his hands around Severus’ neck to keep him in place, while the latter peppered butterfly kisses all over Harry’s face, making Harry feel ticklish as he squealed a little in delight. Pleased that his little beloved was enjoying him, Severus smiled and traced his tongue along his neck before capturing his lips again, his hands snaking down to his chest and rubbed his nipples. Harry shuddered and moaned as Severus did a tongue dance with him while he rubbed on the nipples some more, making them into hard nubs, which in turn forcing the boy to moan more and rub his boyhood against Severus’, desperate for some action. Unfortunately, not only Severus didn’t comply, but he stopped rubbing and capture the nipples in his mouth instead, sucking and nibbling them until it ached with want.

            “Sev, please…I need you…” Harry pleaded, his hand threading through Severus’ hair.

            “Patience, pet,” Severus whispered a lube spell on his fingers and eased one into Harry. “I want to make love to you, not fuck you senseless.”

            “But I _want_ you to fuck me senseless…” Harry whined, his hand tightened in his hair.

            “Shh…Let me prove to you I love you…”

            Severus entered another finger, thrusting gently, scissoring and stretching him slowly. Harry tried to push down onto his fingers, feeling the pleasure like nothing before. He didn’t know whether it was because he hadn’t had Severus in him for so long or it was the strong effects of the lust potion, but he couldn’t wait. He wanted Severus in him, _right now_ , but Severus was giving him no quarter. He felt the older man’s other hand covering his eyes gently and kissing deeply as the latter, entered his third finger all the way in, briefly brushing the nub of nerves within.

            “Ooh…! D-D-Do that again, Sev…!” Harry moaned louder than he had been.

            Severus smirked and pushed in, pressing lightly against the nub and tickled it, teasing Harry into a frenzy.

            “God, oh god, oh god!” Harry tossed his head from side to side. “I'm gonna come soon!”

            “Go ahead, pet. Come for me. Scream my name for me.”

            “Oh god, yes…yes…oh god, oh…SEVERUS!” Harry yelled as he came, white ribbons ending up all over his chest. His body twitched for a moment from the orgasm before slumping to the bed, limp and panting. Severus leaned down to lick a little of the cum before touching noses with Harry, taking out his fingers and teased his hole with his rod, all lubed up beforehand.

            “Do you still want me inside you, pet?”

            “Yes, Sev…” Harry panted. “I want you inside me, please…”

            Severus leaned over to suck on Harry’s nipples in turn as he slowly eased himself into him with one stroke. Harry widened his eyes in amazement as he was filled to the hilt.

            “Oh, Merlin…It fits so well in me…”

            “Yes…” Severus laid butterfly kisses all over Harry’s neck. “Mmh, you wrap around me just nice as well…”

            Harry tilted his head back to let Severus gain more access in his kisses, but was soon whimpering when Severus didn’t start moving. Severus slowly started thrusting in and out, deliberately pressing the tip of the cock against where Harry’s bundle of nerves were just right, making Harry cry out with ecstasy. The boy grabbed on the bed with one hand and Severus with the other, stars seeming to dance in his mind’s eye whenever Severus hit the right spot, prompting the older man to pick up speed. Severus wanted to just ram into Harry, but he was bent on keeping his word to make love to Harry, not jabbing at him like he was a fuck toy.

            Harry moaned his approval and begged for a kiss, in which Severus did, kissing him passionately as he went faster and deeper, starting to hit the sweet spot harder. Harry held onto him as if he was afraid something would snap inside of Severus and all the pleasure would go away. He had not meant for tears to start flowing but the pleasure had been so much. It seemed to be healing his pain of abandonment before and washing away his guilt of yelling at his beloved for no reason. Severus broke the kiss gently to see his tears and thought he had hurt him. Severus quickly slowed down and held Harry’s cheeks in his hands.

            “Harry? Pet, are you OK? I’m so sorry, did I hurt you?”

            “No, you didn’t hurt me…” Harry replied, shaking his head. “I’m sorry…It just feels too good…You treat me so nice, so gentle, even after I had been so mean to you just now…I don’t know if I will ever truly deserve you…”

            “Oh, pet,” Severus said as he kissed the tears away. “Don’t say such things. You know you deserve everything I give you and more. You are my one and only, my everything. Trust me on that, pet, and don’t think of anything else.”

            “Thank you, my Master. I love you so much.”

            “I love you too, pet. So, so much.”

            So saying, Severus picked up his speed again, aiming the sweet spot as much as he could while leaning down to suckle Harry’s nipples again. Harry gasped as he felt the familiar tightening of the pit of his stomach. That could not be. He just came so much not too long ago. He never thought it would be possible to come during sex, but now twice? He had not come so much in one sitting for quite a long time since the last sex they had back in Hogwarts, and now he felt like as if he had not come before in his whole life. Was the lust potion that strong?

            “Oh god, Sev…! I feel like I need to come again…!!”

            “Yes, Harry. Let go of yourself,” Severus said as he brought Harry’s legs on his shoulders so that he got the perfect angle to hit the sweet spot more accurately. He started moving faster, harder and deeper, feeling his own rod throbbing with release as he leaned down to whisper in Harry’s ear, “Enjoy this moment. Come as much as you like.”

            Before Harry could tell him, he could feel the muscles at the pit of his stomach squeezing so hard that it was almost choking his bladder. He grabbed the sheets and let out a strangled scream as he came. Severus hissed at the feeling of his cock getting gripped tight by Harry’s inner muscles as the boy came, making his cock throb even more and his own pit of stomach tighten.

            “Ooh, you’re gripping me in…” Severus groaned as he thrust. “You’re gonna make me come soon…”

            “Yes…Yes, please…” Harry panted, his body feeling like jelly. “Come inside me. Mark me.”

            “Oh gods, I’m com…”

            His words were caught in his throat as he emptied himself into his little beloved, letting out string after string of seed into him until it overflowed. Harry was able to feel the warmth of his beloved’s cum as he was filled to the brim, moaning his pleasure as he held onto Severus’ wrists to anchor himself. Severus trembled as the last tremors subsided before he prepared to pull out of him, but Harry quickly grabbed his arm.

            “No, please. Stay in a little longer.”

            Severus was surprised at first, but then smiled and complied. He lay on him with the cock still in him, trying not to put all his weight on him. Harry smiled back and threaded a finger through Severus’ sweaty locks.

            “Thank you, Severus. Thank you for loving me.”

            “Thank you, too, for loving a snarky old man like me.”

            “Ah, but you are _my_ snarky old man.”

            “Tease.”

            The couple laughed and kissed each other tenderly for a few minutes, before Harry’s eyes snapped open when he felt Severus’ cock growing hard and big within him.

            “Hadn’t had enough yet?” Harry grinned deviously.

            “So are you,” Severus commented as he rubbed his middle against Harry’s rod that had come back to life as well.

            “That is some lust potion,” Harry breathed as he groaned in pleasure when he felt Severus thrusting into him gently again.

\--:--

            Harry awoke at the sound of birds chirping outside and stirred a little. Once his eyes adjusted to the light, he saw Severus behind him, holding him possessively close to his chest as they were sleeping in a spooning position. He smiled and planted a chaste kiss on Severus’ forehead before wincing a little as he pulled himself off Severus’ rod.

            Walking a little wobbly towards the kitchen, he went to check if there was anything to eat. He saw some of the Christmas leftover cookies in the larder and took the plate out, nibbling at one while he fixed himself some pumpkin juice. He felt something warm trickling down his thighs and blushed as he saw Severus’ essence leaked out of him. His mind wandered to the sex that lasted for almost 2 days and a half thanks to the effect of the lust potion. He could’ve sworn he had come more than he should during the umpteenth time he was shagged senseless, but his cock always came back to life and his ass begging for more after each session. Looking down at himself, he saw that his memories had sent his ‘little friend’ shooting up again, pointing at the ceiling.

            “Damn…” Harry scolded more towards himself rather than his erection. “Is it still in effect again?”

            “I’m afraid so, pet.”

            Harry almost jumped as he felt Severus’ arms wrapped around him and heard Severus’ devious chuckle as the older man’s man meat was pressed suggestively against his ass.

            “Are you not tired from our goodness-knows-how-many-times session last night?” Harry asked as he stuffed another cookie into his mouth, feeding one to Severus.

            “Surprisingly no,” Severus replied as he reached one hand for the pumpkin juice which was meant for Harry, ignoring Harry’s protest. “I know I should, judging by my age, but it seems my body metabolism is rather slow at expelling the lust potion residue. I suppose it’ll hold out for a little while longer, not that I don’t like it.”

            “What’s with the wand?” Harry asked, gesturing at Severus’ wand on the kitchen counter. “And I don’t mean the one pressing against my ass.”

            “You were suddenly gone. I was worried,” Severus replied, nuzzling Harry’s neck. “Come back to bed, pet. It’s cold without you to warm me there.”

            “Horny toad.”

            “On the contrary,” Severus smirked as he teased Harry’s cock with the tip of his fingers, making the boy whine, “you are the horny toad here. Admit it, you want me again, don’t you?”

            “Y…Yes…” Harry whimpered as he licked his lips, not sure whether it was the lust potion that was making him say it or his body was being a little too honest. “I…I do…”

            “Beg for it,” Severus chuckled and traced along Harry’s lips with his thumb. “I want you to beg for it.”

            “I don’t beg,” Harry frowned and pouted, despite his body screaming for it.

            “Really? Well, you might want to reconsider that, or else I’m only just going to do this to you.”

            So saying, Severus reached over and tweaked Harry’s nipples. Harry bit his lip to keep a moan from escaping.

            “P…Please…Fuck me…” Harry said, not so in a begging voice, but more of needy.

            “Not good enough, pet,” Severus smirked as he nibbled on Harry’s earlobe, continuing to rub his nipples with his fingers.

            “Oh come on…” Harry’s breathing started becoming erratic. “We both know you want to…ah…please?”

            “I want you to beg for me,” Severus kissed the boy’s lips before going down to suckle Harry’s nipples in turn. “Like, really beg me, like you want me desperately.”

            Harry’s knees immediately went weak as Severus slowly maneuvered him to the floor, continuing to attack his nipples, reducing Harry into a writhing, moaning fool. He clawed at the cabinet doors trying to anchor himself, but Severus was not making it easy especially when his tongue was expertly torturing Harry into submission and making his cock throb like crazy. _Damn this lust potion…Damn this stupid pride…_ he thought as he finally said those words with a burning red face.

            “I…I want you inside me, Master…I want your cock up in my ass…Please…fuck me…!!”

            “Now that’s much better.”

            With that, Severus released his hold on Harry’s cock and went down to suck on Harry’s really hard rod while sticking two fingers at once into Harry’s already wet ass and finger-fucked him vigorously, making the boy scream both in pleasure and in frustration.

            “My, my, pet,” Severus said as he licked around his cock. “Aren’t we still nice and tight after being fucked so hard last night?”

            “Fuck…!!” Harry panted. “Please, Master, stop teasing…!!”

            Severus chuckled and replaced his fingers with his cock, entering him in one swift and hard stroke. Harry hissed his approval, savouring the feeling of his beloved so perfect inside him. Nibbling at his earlobe, Severus moved inside him at a steady rhythm, while Harry wound his arms and legs around him.

            “I love you…!! I love this…!! Ah!! Harder!!”

            “Mmh~! Yes, I know you like it rough,” Severus groaned in pleasure as he moved faster, pummeling harder and deeper into him until he hit that bundle of nerves.

            Harry cried out in euphoric passion as he threw his head back. He had never liked it rough until Severus came into the picture. Some of his past Masters were always stabbing him like a rag doll, giving him no pleasure and sometimes making him bleed because they didn’t have the courtesy to use lube on him. But Severus’ rough sex here was definitely so much better than their definition of rough. It was like being hit by a bulldozer over and over again, but there was no pain, only pleasure. His cry got louder when he felt Severus pushing his legs up until the knees were touching his chest and rammed into him, assaulting the sweet spot again and again in full force.

            “Master!!” Harry screamed at the top of his lungs over and over again as he gripped on a cabinet handle with one hand and clawing at the floor with the other. “I need to…I’m gonna…gonna…come…oh GOD!!”

            Severus responded with a grunt and spread his legs wider for more access as he pummeled into him, literally banging against the spot while he reached down to pump the boy’s cock. Moments later, Harry bit his lip as he came, spurting all over Severus’ hand and on his chest because of the body position he was in, his body twitching and fidgeting with pleasure.

            “Still can’t hold it in, can you? Just like a woman,” Severus grinned as he slowed down his thrusts a little.

            “You…You got the willpower of a beast…you know that…?” Harry panted, tears of lust and bliss clung in his eyes as the euphoria overpowered him.

            “No, I’m just an experienced man and you need to work on your endurance.”

            “Your fault for making it so hard to endure, snarky ass.”

            “Seems like someone’s got a potty mouth.”

            Before Harry knew it, Severus picked him up forcefully and ramming him (but not too harshly) onto the dining table. He grabbed his wand he left on the kitchen counter and accio-ed the ribbon that was previously on the bottle of wine that started all this sexual fiesta and brought both Harry’s hands around one of his thighs, then ties his wrists together tight, not giving him any room to struggle from his binds.

            “This will prove interesting,” Severus smirked as he watched the display with a lustful look in his eyes.

            “Wh…What are you doing, Sev…?” Harry blinked in confusion, his hands trying to move but was going nowhere.

            “Just trying to be a little creative…and to punish you for being such a potty mouth.”

            With that, Severus pushed the boy’s ass up until his hole was facing him and instead of putting himself back in, he stuck his fingers in, finger-fucking him hard and deep. Harry twitched in ecstasy, feeling Severus’ finger delving deep into him but nowhere near hitting that bundle of nerves within him, only brushing it occasionally, and almost immediately, his cock was ‘up and at it’.

            “Someone’s being raunchy today,” Severus said as he teased Harry’s balls with his tongue, flicking at it torturously slow. “Looks like you prefer to just settle with this, eh? You look as if you can already come just by this alone.”

            “No, no, please, no…” Harry begged, twisting like he was having a convulsion from this torture. “Fuck me…!! Fuck me already…!!”

            “How demanding my pet is today.”

            Severus replaced his fingers with himself, again entering him with one swift thrust and moved at a steady rhythm, leaning down to lick his nipples. Harry moaned at the helpless yet pleasurable feeling. He wanted to grip onto the table to anchoring himself but he couldn’t do that with his hands bound around his thigh, and neither could he wrap his arms and legs around Severus to bring him closer or deeper. It was frustrating but at the same time it was arousing.

            “S-S-Sev, please…please let my arms go…”

            “Do you not feel excited?” Severus asked as he sped up his thrusts, tweaking Harry’s nipples at the same time. “It’s kinky, isn’t it, being punished like this?”

            “But…But I want to hold you…” Harry whined.

            “No, this is your punishment for being a potty mouth,” Severus smirked a little evilly before he went even faster, getting deeper at each thrust until he was jabbing against the bundle of nerves within Harry, making the boy almost squeak in ecstatic shock. “And until you learn your lesson, you’re staying like this.”

            So saying, Severus leaned down to kiss him just the way he loved it, spreading Harry’s legs a little wider, but not too wide to pull at Harry’s arm muscles, and hit him just right. Harry could feel the imploding feeling within his cock coming faster than expected. He tried to hold back but without his hands to anchor him on anything, there was no way he could even keep it at bay, especially when his mind was losing his focus with all the white hot stars flashing in his mind’s eye every time Severus hit his sweet spot that sent pleasurable electrical jolts all over his body.

            “Oh fuck!” Harry panted in a rather high voice, “Sev, I feel like I need too…”

            His words were cut short when a loud bang sounded at the verandah, literally shocking the both of them out of their sexual feral mood. Severus slowly pulled out and put a finger to his lips, hushing him before releasing Harry off his binds. He made him get off the dining table and hid him under it, covering him up with the table cloth before brandishing his wand. He picked up his robe that was strewn across a tableside lamp in the living room and donned it on before walking cautiously towards the verandah. Peering out to it, he saw what the cause of that loud bang was and heaved a sigh of relief.

            “You can come out now, Harry. It’s just an owl that bumped against the closed verandah door.”

            Harry peeked out of the table cloth to make sure the coast was clear before crawling out from under the table. He came up and saw Severus picking up a rather dazed owl with a parcel in its beak and placing it on the kitchen counter. While Severus took the parcel off the owl’s beak, Harry went to the larder and tore off a piece of leftover Christmas turkey for the owl to eat.

            “Who is it from, Sev?” Harry asked as he fed and stroked the owl.

            “It’s from Albus,” Severus said. He saw a letter attached to the parcel and took it out to read it.

* * *

 

_My dear grandson Harry,_

_My deepest apologies for not being able to have you for Christmas this year._ _I do hope you understand that it is not because I don’t want you to be here, but because the situation could not permit it. Even this owl was randomly selected by me instead of using my usual owl to send you this Christmas gift because of fear of the enemy’s possible spies lurking about. I do hope in time, you will forgive me._

_Enjoy your gift, my dear grandson, and Merry Christmas to you._

_With love, Grandpa Albus._

_P/S: Please send my regards to Severus and tell him to go easy on you. He has been rather…unsettled lately._

* * *

 

            “Unsettled?” Harry chuckled at Severus who frowned at that last sentence. “Did you miss me _that_ much?”

            “Not funny, pet,” Severus replied as he placed the owl on a perch near the fireplace. “So what did Albus get you?”

            Harry opened the parcel and in it revealed a piece of silver-ish cloak that shimmered in and out of the light. It felt a little furry to the touch, almost like mink, and when he tried it on, the cloak actually blended into the background, making Harry’s body invisible except his head.

            “Ah, the ever fun-loving Albus Dumbledore strikes again,” Severus chuckled with a hint of sarcasm as he came up to examine the cloak. “This is an Invisibility Cloak, sold by the one and only Weasley twins Fred and George from their prankster shop. Honestly, how those troublemakers are able to juggle their studies and their part-time business is beyond me.”

            “Wow! This is sold by Ron’s brothers? Cool!” Harry exclaimed as he covered and uncovered himself to test the cloak, laughing as he went. “Grandpa Albus always give me great gifts!”

            “I bet it’s not as best as mine,” Severus smirked suggestively, deliberately standing in such a way that his soaring cock was visible.

            “Horny toad,” Harry pouted as he walked off with Albus’ gift, planning to hang it in his wardrobe amongst his clothes for special occasions. He barely realized in his excitement over his gift that Severus was following behind him and only realized his presence when the older man pounced on him just as soon as he hung the cloak, make him fall into the wardrobe with both their lower half of their bodies out of the wardrobe door.

            “We are not done yet, and you are not going anywhere until I fuck you good, my little pet.”

            “Someone’s being very demanding today,” Harry said as he felt Severus reentering him, moaning as the latter started thrusting deep. “Now who’s the potty mouth?”

            “I am the Master right now, pet. I get to say whatever I want,” Severus grinned deviously as he hooked Harry’s legs around him and raised his ass to an angle where he jabbed at Harry’s prostate deep and hard.

            Harry threw his head back, begging for more as he could feel the tightening of his pit of stomach returned. Severus complied by holding onto Harry’s ass tight and literally stabbed at the prostate, each time harder, deeper and faster than before. Harry could feel the tightening strangling his bladder again and could not stand it anymore.

            “Oh god, Master! I need…ahh…” Harry tried to get his hand down to stroke himself but Severus pulled his hand away.

            “No, pet. You are going to come by me alone.”

            “Please, Master,” Harry whimpered desperately. “I need to. I can’t help it.”

            “Then I’ll help you a little.”

            So saying, Severus reached down to tease the tip of Harry’s cock with his fingers. Harry tried to frown in annoyance, but that didn’t work with Severus jabbing his prostate and fingering his most sensitive spot on his cock. He ended up moaning instead as he leaned up for a kiss, in which Severus reciprocated, kissing him deeply and continued to tease the cock. Harry soon felt that part in his stomach snap and he came, nearing screaming into Severus’ mouth. Severus broke the kiss and hissed as he felt Harry’s muscles squeezing him, making him almost going to come, but he held back at the last minute. No way was he going to end this so quickly after being snapped so rudely into reality by that stupid owl and after it was starting to get really good.

            “Feels good, eh? But I’m not quite done yet,” Severus said as he waited for Harry to get down from his high before picking him up, not pulling out from him, and carried him all the way to the bed and made him go on all fours.

            “Oh gods…!” Harry moaned breathlessly, his arms barely able to hold his own weight after being turned into a limp noodle by his orgasms. “Master, you really…have the willpower of…of a beast…”

            Severus chuckled deviously as he held onto Harry’s hips to raise his ass and started thrusting, aiming at the prostate a lot quicker than before. Harry whined as he felt himself feeling more sensitive now. His cock gave a twitch as if it wanted to come again, but there was no way in hell he was able to…was it? Severus, on the other hand, sped up again and hit the prostate relentlessly, not giving it a moment to dissipate as one of his hand reach down to tease his nipples in turn.

            “Blame it on the lust potion if you must,” Severus said as he whispered into Harry’s ear, “but I am going to make you go crazy when I’m done with you.”

            “Ahh…it hurts, Master…” Harry whimpered. He knew he was oversensitive at this point, but somehow, whether it was the effects of the lust potion or somewhere deep within the recesses of his sexual primal instincts, he was loving every moment of it.

            “But it hurts so good, doesn’t it, pet?” Severus asked, licking Harry’s earlobe as he went.

            “Y…Yes, Master…”

            Quietly, Severus’ hand snaked down to massage the cock back to life as he carried on fucking him hard and deep. Harry gasped as he felt his cock twitch even more. He had never felt so wanton and so wanted. If it were another Master, he would have felt like a whore, but never so with Severus. He could feel the love and the passion in every move Severus made on him, and that gave him so much more pleasure than anyone could ever give him.

            “Makes you feel so good, doesn’t it, pet?”

            “Yes…” Harry whispered as he buried his face on the pillow. “More…please…more…”

            Severus turned Harry around to missionary position and kissed him deeply, his hand pumping hard at the same rhythm as his thrusts were. His thrusts were getting deeper, fully ramming onto the prostate in full force as his hand never left his lover’s cock, while his kisses were just as feral. Harry kissed him back, matching his pace expertly as he reached up to thread his hand through Severus’ hair. The boy kissed the older man like a person looking for water. Every touch, every thrust, every kiss was heightened to the point where he felt like he would die if it continued, but he would surely die if Severus stopped.

            “I love you, Harry…I love you so much…”

            “Oh gods…I love you too, Master…Aah…!!”

            “I’m going to come, pet…” Severus groaned, the pit of his stomach tightened in a way it could never have. “Come with me.”

            “I…I don’t know if I can…” Harry threw his head back as he felt Severus lick and suckle at his nipples to help him out.

            “I can fix that.”

            Being in bed with Harry under the influence of the lust potion gave Severus plenty of time to explore and discover the sensitive areas of his little beloved, and one of them he knew was somewhere just right behind Harry’s left ear. As soon as he leaned down to nibble at it, Harry felt that imploding sensation within him as his cock throbbed twice as hard as it should. He was still amazed that he was able to come again after that last orgasm. If there was such thing as overloading a human being, he would have been the perfect example.

            “Ooh, oh gods…I’m gonna come!!”

            “Yes, yes, come with me, my pet…!”

            A few more thrusts later, he could no longer hold back the humongous orgasm that came rushing through, filling Harry up to the brim and overflowing him again. Harry followed suite a few seconds later, splattering his seed all over them before pasing out into a post-climax nap, feeling as if his brain has melted and came out from his cock and his limbs softer than jelly. Severus panted as the last tremors of his orgasm subsided and chuckled when he saw Harry passed out like he had just been given a knock-out potion. He whispered a cleaning spell before pulling out, cuddling against him to sleep along with him, giving in to the lethargic effects of afterglow.

            “Told you I’d drive you crazy once I’m done with you.”


	59. Chapter 59

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that we had very, very, VERY heavy sexin’ with our little Snarry couple, it’s our Beauty and the Beast couple’s turn to have very, very, VERY heavy sexin’, so again, be warned, this chapter might not be as long as expected but it is just as hot and saucy, oh, and did I mention it has very, very, VERY heavy sexin’?! LOL! Read at your own risk of death due to nosebleed!

            Christmas was quite joyous for Draco during Severus’ absence to Harry’s place. As expected, while Sirius held a big Christmas bash at his estate (heavy drinking and merry-making included), he had celebrated it with his beloved Remus, the Old Married Couple, Tonks and the hired help in the privacy of the servants’ lounge. Lucky for him, his father was not able to attend the Christmas bash due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’, so his cover was not blown. Gifts were exchanged, but mostly the gifts for him and Remus were meant for the babies, though Draco didn’t really mind, and at this very rare occasion, Sirius actually gave a gift to Draco for the babies, which was a pair of expensive-looking velvet toy snakes that can come alive at command. Draco had wondered why would he even bothered when he played the least bit role other than housing him, but one look at the secret glances exchanged between Sirius and Paprika told him everything he needed to know.

            It had been almost 3 weeks after Christmas since then and during those few weeks, Remus somehow changed his demeanour a little, starting off by getting lesser and lesser in their intimacy, then soon avoiding anything that might lead to sex. He took more cold showers than usual, plant chaste kisses on the cheek and spending too much time with other hired help instead of being by his side to meet his every whim and fancy, making Draco feel rather abandoned lately.

            It wasn’t like Draco hadn’t try, but he felt like his pleas were falling on deaf ears. He had been giving rather subtle hints like leaning close to him, sitting on his lap or sleeping in bed naked, but Remus would always mutter an excuse and went off to god knows where. Then he would try to give him the cold shoulder approach by not sleeping in his arms or do his lessons or reading either outside or in the study, away from Remus, but the wolf didn’t seem to bat an eyelid or feel anything about it. He was starting to wonder whether his pregnant belly was turning him off.

            The hired help, including Paprika, noticed the tension between them two and wondered what was going on. Even Sirius, who usually couldn’t care less about the two, noticed the change in atmosphere between them and was mildly curious as well. After much urging from her fellow colleagues, Paprika decided to find out about it. She saw Draco sitting outside under the family heirloom tree reading his school books as usual but saw from her distance that Draco was doing more crying than reading. She knew if her Young Master was crying, it must be something serious. Slowly, she approached him.

            “You alright there, Young Master?”

            “Fine!” Draco snapped as he wiped his eyes hastily and hid his head in his knees. “Just…fine.”

            “Remus being neglectful, I presume?” Paprika asked as she sat beside him.

            “I just…don’t understand. He’s suddenly so cold to me and not being with me anymore. He only kisses me on the cheek and that is when I ask of him, not voluntarily. He doesn’t even care if I don’t sleep in his arms anymore! What have I done wrong? If he has fallen out of love with me, then why doesn’t he just come out and say it?”

            “Have you tried asking him?”

            “Not really, since he always keeps running out on me whenever I try to ask,” Draco started sobbing again. “He must be bored of me. My pregnancy must be turning him off. I know I’m already in my 6th month and I’m getting fatter as we speak. He hasn’t even kissed me on the lips on his own for TWO FUCKING WEEKS!! He must be going around with one of the maids and…and…WAA~!!!”

            _Here comes the mood swings again,_ Paprika thought as she came closer to hold him close, calming him down. After Draco stopped crying a little, she consoled, “Now, now, Young Master Malfoy. You know Remus would never do that. Maybe you should confront him with it. Make him tell you, rather than sitting here bawling about it. It’s not good for the future Young Mistresses in you, you know.”

            “I want him, Paprika. Damn it, I _need_ him! Do you have any idea how much I’ve tried to get him to fuck me senseless? Do you have any idea how much I want his cock in my ass right now??” Draco almost screamed his desire out in his tears if it weren’t for the fact that they were out in the open, then sighed and looked at his feet, “I don’t think he wants me anymore. I think he’s just hanging around for the sake of Abigail and Amarinth and then he’ll leave me and take them away from me.”

            “I doubt Remus is that cruel. C’mon, Young Master. Just confront him. Don’t let him rest until he tells you about it. Show him that you’re serious as a concerned mate should.”

            “But…But what if he gets upset and lashes out at me?”

            “He won’t do that to you, not when he knows you carry his children. Trust me. Give it a shot. Better to do something rather than regret not doing it, don’t you think?”

            “I…I guess so…” Draco replied, though his tone still hesitant.

            “There you go,” Paprika smiled and rubbed his back before going off, leaving him to his thoughts.

            _One down, one to go,_ she thought as she made her way to the backyard.

\--:--

            Remus drew in a loud gasp of air as he pulled up his wet sopping head from the bucket of cold water, but one whiff of the air and he knew this cold water was not enough to keep him at bay. The air was still cold and it was stilling snowing for the later part of the month but he could tell from the atmosphere that the snow will make way soon for the spring rain, and that is when it would soon blow over. But how could he hold out when every time he saw Draco’s pregnant body he wanted to ravish him?

            “You know you’re going to catch pneumonia that way.”

            Remus turned around to see Paprika approaching him, dressed far more warmly than Remus was, who was only in his shirt and long pants with socks.

            “Please go away, Paprika,” Remus sighed as he looked away. “You’re not really helping me right now.”

            “I’ve been wondering why you have been abstinent towards Young Master Malfoy,” Paprika said as she wrapped a trench-coat around the wolf. “The constant cold showers, the weird twitches on your nose whenever you are close to Young Master, the tint of red on your cheeks that just won’t go away…I’ve been reading about werewolves since you showed up. You’re in heat, aren’t you?”

            Remus turned to her in shock, surprised at how she figured him out so easily when no others could, but seeing her knowing look, he knew not to underestimate her. He sighed and nodded in defeat.

            “Worse. So is Drake. I can smell him from all the way here, and he is driving me crazy. And him being pregnant amplifies the smell more, definitely not helping my self-control right now.”

            “Then why don’t you just let yourself go?”

            “I will not hurt him or the cubs,” Remus growled as he shivered in the cold. “You have no idea how feral I can be once I give in to my heat. He doesn’t have to know. I’ll just hold off until the heat goes away.”

            “And when will that be? Spring? That’s too long a time,” Paprika flailed her hands in annoyance. “This abstinence thing is not going to help you when you know how much Young Master needs you. You’ll freeze to death at this rate. Besides, this is the time where pregnant mothers are at the highest peak of their sexual height. He needs you more than ever.”

            “I know, but…” Remus’ voice drifted off before shaking his head vehemently. “No, I refuse to give in to my urges. I am not an animal.”

            “Well, you still have to do something about Young Master. If you say that he is in heat as well, his pheromones are bound to attract attention, especially from those in the forest beyond Master Black’s estate.”

            “Ex…Excuse me?”

            “You say you’re in heat, right, and that Young Master is in human heat, and that you can smell him from all the way here? Well, if you’re in heat, that means those wolves over there in the forest are in heat as well, and they are bound to smell Young Master, especially that Greyback fellow Master Black said you’ve met. You let that monster have a whiff of Young Master and he couldn’t care less about the pact he and Master Black’s ancestors have made. You wouldn’t want Greyback to ‘attack’ Young Master now, would you?”

            She knew she was pushing it and making up theories, but it seemed to get Remus all fired up.

            “I will rip him to shreds if that happens!”

            “Then claim Young Master. Take what’s rightfully yours.”

            “But…But what about…?”

            “Master Black?” Paprika asked as she led Remus back into the servants’ lounge and seated him by the fire. “Oh, don’t worry about him. He’s going off the Muggle world on a post-New Year celebration outing the day after tomorrow, and he’s bringing along everyone with him. You and Young Master will be in charge of the house.”

            “E…Everyone?” Remus asked in a surprised tone as he tried to warm himself. “Including you?”

            “Yes. We may not look it, but the hired help are all Muggle-borns, which means we usually get the chance to go back home once in a while to visit our Muggle parents during this kind of outings. It’s a sort of derogatory way of the Black family to hire Muggle-borns as the hired help so that they can bully and insult them for being ‘Mudbloods’, but ever since the Ministry adopted the Muggles’ act on human labour rights, anyone who owns hired help must sign a contract that they are allowed to visit their next of kin at least once a year. We’re both slaves, so we don’t have the privilege, but Master Black decided to…well,” Paprika blushed a little before continuing, “sort of ‘rekindle’ our relationship, so I’m going with him as well.”

            “Well, at least that’s good news for you. You’ll be able to feel Master Black’s love again like you used to.”

            “Just so long as I promise Master Black to be careful and take birth-control potions.”

            “Fair enough,” Remus replied as he heaved a sigh of relief at the warmth returning to his hands and the rest of his body. “Don’t want to have history happening to you again.”

            “Right,” Paprika smiled a little forlornly at the memory of her two lost unborn children before turning to leave, “I gotta go pack up now, and inform Young Master Malfoy about Master Black’s departure. Oh, before I forget…”

            “Yes?”

            “Everything is to your disposal,” Paprika lowered her voice to whisper in Remus’ ear, “including Master Black’s secret stash of booze money in his study. Fifth shelf, eleventh book to the right. You can’t miss it, and neither would he.”

            With that, Paprika left almost mysteriously, humming to herself as she left Remus with his own thoughts.

\--:--

            “I have a surprise for you, Drake.”

            Draco looked up at him in surprise. It felt almost like forever since he heard Remus even talk to him properly, and now, as soon as Prof. Sinistra left after a long day’s lesson to prepare him for the upcoming mock exam (which will be conducted here under supervision, of course), Remus was talking to him as if his silent treatment had never happened.

            “Wh…What is it…?” Draco asked tentatively.

            “Stand up, love,” Remus smiled as he revealed a black scarf, “and I will blindfold you so that you don’t spoil the surprise.”

            Blindfold? Now this was getting even more mysterious. Draco looked at the scarf a bit warily before looking back up at the half-wolf.

            “You…won’t do anything crazy…right…?”

            “I promise you, nothing will happen until the blindfold comes off.”

            “OK…” Draco replied as he came close to him. “You’re the father of our children. I trust you.”

            “As I am your mate,” Remus leaned down to kiss him before putting the blindfold on, “And you are my angel.”

            With that, he led him out of the room, down the hall and down the stairs towards the living room. Draco, being unable to see, had to trust fully the guidance of Remus. He clung onto his sleeve with one hand and held Remus’ hand with the other, dependent on his voice and touches as he guided him every step of the way. As soon as they were in the living room, he took the blindfold off Draco.

            “OK, you can open your eyes.”

            As soon as Draco’s eyes adjusted to the light, he gasped. The living room seemed to be transformed. There were red and white rose petals everywhere on a soft rug in front of the fireplace, and there were bowls upon bowls of strawberries both dipped in plain chocolate sauce and whipped cream, with another bowl of chocolate chunks and a bottle of sparkling grape juice with two empty glasses right by the sideline, its vibrant colours illuminated by the steady glow of the fire while the rest of the room were lit with the occasional candles.

            “R-Remy…When did you…How did you…” the young blonde was rendered speechless at all the splendor around him.

            “All for you, my mate,” Remus kissed Draco on the cheek. “Get undressed, love. The rug feels exceptionally smooth on skin.”

            “It…It must’ve cost a fortune…” Draco replied as he undressed, unable to get over the place. “Wh…Where did you even get the money to buy all this?”

            “Not much really,” Remus grinned as he went over to the rug and sat down, waiting for Draco to join him. “Paprika hinted that Master Black had some money stashed in his study that he won’t miss, and I only took out as much as I dared to. I used it to buy the roses and the strawberries. The rest I went hunting around the house to get it…D…Drake, what’s wrong?”

            Instead of the happy or impressed reaction he was hoping to get, Remus was shocked to see Draco bursting into tears. He quickly rushed up to his little blonde, kneeling at his eye level and caressed his hair gently, kissing his tears away.

            “I…I thought…I thought you didn’t want me anymore…That I’m turning you off now that I’ve gotten so fat and ugly…I…I thought…”

            “Oh, my little Master, no, no, no,” Remus replied as he kissed him over and over again. “I would never be turned off by you. Never. Quite the contrary, you’re turning me on more than ever. You see, it’s your pheromones. It’s driving me crazy.”

            “My…My what?”

            “Your scent, the one that females in heat give off, which is what you’re giving off right now due to your pregnancy. And the fact that I am in heat as well. Back when I was still under Master Malfoy, my heat served him well and when we were together, part of the rough sex I’ve been doing to you was because of my heat, but now that you’re pregnant, I was afraid I might hurt the cubs if I let my instincts drive me.”

            “Is…Is that why you’re avoiding me before…?” Draco asked as soon as everything clicked in his mind. “Is it really not because I’m fat…?”

            “You’re not fat. You’re pregnant with our cubs. If I were the only one in heat, I would try to hold myself back until spring comes where everything will ease off by its own, but now that you are in heat as well, and the fact that you might possibly attract unwanted attention from those beasts in the forest, I could no longer stand it anymore.”

            “I’m…I’m OK if you lose yourself on me. Abigail and Amarinth are strong; they can handle you. I…I really want you…I _need_ you…”

            “Then come to me, Drake,” Remus said as he lay back again with open arms, “and let me lose myself on you.”

            After wiping the tears off his eyes and calmed down some, Draco sheepishly got on his knees and crawls towards him, afraid that he would ruin the petals set so nicely around. As soon as he was near, the half-wolf smiled and put his arms around him, cuddling him close.

            “I think you are the most beautiful creature in the whole world…and taste the best too,” Remus whispered and leaned in to lick his nipple. “But I can even make you taste even better.”

            So saying, he dipped a chocolate chunk in the chocolate sauce and rubbed it on his nipple, before placing the chocolate chunk on it and ate it, licking off the sauce. Draco couldn’t hold back a whine of pleasure as he felt Remus’ tongue on his nipple, his body shivering with delight as Remus came back on his knees and pulled Draco to straddle his leg. He drizzled some more chocolate sauce on him, most of them on his neck, and slowly sucked and licked it off like it was caviar on his lips.

            While he enjoyed the feeling of being licked, Draco reached down to grab a strawberry, ran it along the chocolate on his body n then ate it seductively in front of Remus. Remus smirked at him and laid him down on the floor, not caring if he ruined the flower petals, and took a strawberry and put it in the whipped cream. Then he took it and drew little circles about Draco’s nipples and down to the navel, making the young blonde trembles. Draco then imitated him by taking a strawberry and dipped it in the whipped cream as well before tracing it around Remus’ already half-erected cock before popping into his mouth, causing the half-wolf to shiver and let out a trembling exhale and grinned.

            “Getting bold, aren’t we, my naughty little Master?”

            Using the still whole strawberry, Remus bypassed Draco’s cock and ran it down the crack of the head, teasing the hole lightly. Draco hissed at the sensation and fell back before he could control it, accidentally knocking onto the chocolate sauce and drenched himself with it.

            “S-Sorry…” Draco said awkwardly, blushing.

            “Don’t be. It’ll make my eating you so much better.”

            Without warning, Remus picked up the bowl of strawberries and poured it onto Draco where the chocolate sauce covered him, making the young blonde giggle at the soft thumps of the fruit hitting his body. He then leaned down to eat the strawberries and lick every delicious part of the chocolate-covered body in front of him. Draco moaned in ecstasy, feeling Remus’ roaming tongue all over him. His cock hardened even further at the fact that the older man’s wet heat was exploring his body everywhere. As soon as he was done eating every inch of his little beloved’s body, Remus leaned back, grabbing the bowl of whipped cream this time, and poured it onto his cock.

            “Up, Drake. I want you to suck me.”

            Draco eyed the cock hungrily and crawled towards the cock. His tongue first licked over the whipped cream, spreading it around before taking him whole as much as possible, bobbing in and out expertly.

            “Yes, Love, just like that,” Remus moaned as he stroked Draco’s hair. “Suck me, Drake, suck me.”

            Draco did as he was told, sucking and licking him at the same time, bobbing his head while his hands reach over to knead his balls.

            “Ah, so good, my Master, so good…”

            Remus started thrusting his hips up, fucking his mouth slightly. Draco relaxed his throat as much as possible, holding onto his hips to allow him to fuck his mouth, lost in the pure pleasure of it all. His hand snaked down to his own and stroked lightly, but was stopped by Remus pulling up against him.

            “Don’t touch yourself just yet, love,” Remus said as he lightly touched Draco’s opening. “Are you ready to be fuck? Are you ready to scream my name?”

            “Yes, yes, please,” Draco whined as he could not control his body from going on all fours and holding his cheeks apart since he was being aroused so badly. “Fuck me until I lose my mind.”

            Remus took whatever was left of the chocolate sauce and lathered it onto his cock before pushing into Draco so slowly that they both almost lost their minds. Draco let out a strangled moan as he was being filled slowly. It felt phenomenal, and the different smells surrounded him—the sweet smell of strawberries, the strong smell of chocolate, the creamy smell of whipped cream, the burnt smell of the fire, the musky scent of the rug, the paraffin smell of the candles, the slightly moldy smell of the living room itself—was driving him wild. Once Remus had it all the way inside him he started to pound away.

            “So good, Draco…So tight…How can you be so tight…?”

            “I’m always tight for you, Remus…” Draco panted erratically as he gripped at the rug beneath him. “So good…! So good…!!”

            “Yes, just perfect…” Remus pulled Draco back against him again and again, losing himself in this primal coupling. “I am going to cover your whole body with my seed…then I am going to mark you as my mate…”

            “Yes! Yes! Mark me! Make me yours!”

            Draco screamed louder and louder as he felt his spot ravished, totally given into this love-making, his body racked with pleasure that sent jolts down his spine. The back of his mind remembered something about marking as said by Fenrir when Remus mentioned it, but his brain was a little too fazed to think straight right now. He couldn’t care less what Remus did, as long as the pleasure did not stop.

            Remus fucked him harder and harder as he dared until he could feel the familiar tightening. Quickly he pulled out and fucked Draco between the butt-cheeks and as he came, he leaned down and bit Draco’s neck, hard and enough to break the skin. The sting of Remus’ teeth on his neck made Draco come after him, spilling his seed all over the rug. Once Remus calmed down, he lapped at the wound off the blood before pushing Draco down on the rug to lick up his seed that was leaking out of his cock. The young blonde’s tremors had yet subsided when he felt Remus’ tongue licking his seed, causing him to come a little bit more.

            “So beautiful,” Remus whispered as he finished licking him. He rolled him over before he pushed back in him, this time just slowly rocking into him and stroking his hair.

            “Mmh…!” Draco whined as he felt himself being reentered, his senses getting even more aroused. “Oh, gods…You’re driving me crazy…!”

            “Yes, love, and now that I’ve marked you, you are even more beautiful.”

            “Is that…how a marking does, like what Fenrir said?”

            “Yes. When a wolf claims a mate, they must bite down on their mate’s neck somewhere near the jugular to break a little skin. This bite has almost a scarring and/or tattooing effect, and will be recognized by every wolf who sees it, and learn to steer clear away of what belongs to me.”

            “So basically,” Draco said as he fingered the slightly throbbing mark, “you’re giving me a permanent hickie.”

            “That’s the layman’s term for it, yes,” Remus chuckled. “I will be softening soon.”

            “Do…Do you want me to…?” Draco wanted to offer to help him get it hard again, but he was loss at words because his mind was doing the loop-da-loop due to the pleasure.

            “I want you to feel pleasure. It’s alright if you want to take a breather.”

            So saying, Draco’s body totally went limp as he basked in the afterglow, his brain felt as if it had just evaporated. Remus smiled and picked him up and took him to the bathroom where a warm bath was already waiting, thank to some heat-preserving solution he had found in Sirius’ bathroom beforehand. Draco allowed Remus to manhandle him as the ordeal made him quite drained, but he did gasped a little as he felt the warmth of the water taking him by surprise.

            “How do you feel, love?” Remus asked as he gently bathed him.

            “Like I just went up to Heaven and back,” Draco whispered weakly as he nuzzled against Remus. “That was amazing. I almost wish it would never end.”

            “I am glad. Sleep. I will finish cleaning you then put you to bed.”

            Draco nodded and enjoyed the rest of the bath in Remus’ arms, almost falling asleep in the warmth of the water. Once he was done, Remus picked him up, dried him and laid him on the bed before cleaning himself and joined him.

            _I promise you, this won’t be the last time you’ll feel this pleasure once you awake,_ Remus thought as he drifted off to sleep.

\--:--

            Draco winced as the morning light streamed into the room. He stirred a little to see himself sleeping in bedroom. It took him a while to remember why he was here and not in the living room on the rug where they consummate their relationship as mate and surrendered to each other’s heat. Remus, on the other hand, was snoring, his arm across Draco’s waist and belly. Draco lay back down, staring at Remus’ features, his fingers ghosting around Remus’ face. He smiled as he realized how truly handsome he is up close. A little bit of scars here and there, but still, that’s what made him so manly. That and also a little of his chest hair that slightly glimmered under the sunlight.

            Remus groaned at the ticklish feeling on his face and turned over on his back, but he was still sleeping. Draco giggled quietly at that reaction, then out of mischief, lean forward to nibble Remus’ ear. Remus moaned in his sleep a little and Draco tickled his ear some more by licking a little at the ear he just nibbled. Remus moaned again, reaching over for something and Draco quickly pulled away, giggling to himself. As he sat up and continued to eye his mate, studying his features again, Remus left out a “Humph” in his sleep as if whatever he was trying to get had run away. Draco tried to repeat what he did again, leaned over and nibbled and licked at the same time, but this time Remus caught him.

            “Someone’s being naughty,” Remus growled in a pretend angry tone as he opened his tired eyes slowly.

            “It’s your fault for being so cute sleeping like that,” Draco replied as he stuck out his tongue naughtily.

            “Really?” Remus pushed him over and got on top of him, catching Draco’s arms over his head. “What about you? You are very cute when you sleep as well.”

            “No, I don’t,” Draco blushed and pouted.

            “You are like an angel,” Remus took his other hand and traced lightly around Draco’s nipple, making the boy shiver at the touch. “So beautiful, much like when you come.”

            “Not funny, Remus.”

            Remus chuckled as he leaned down to kiss Draco like there was no tomorrow. Some of the drool leaked out from the corner of his lips as they kissed passionately and Remus used that to lubricate his fingers before slipping one into Draco, making the blonde wince and moan in slight pleasure.

            “Do you want me to be inside you again, Drake?” Remus asked, hoping that he would agree; just having one finger inside his mate was driving him crazy, especially when the smell of his pheromones still lingered, igniting his own heat.

            “If you think you can still handle me,” Draco replied, although in all honesty, Remus’ finger was driving him crazy in more ways than one. “How many times did we do it last night? I remember waking up in the middle of the night wanting you again, then I think I sorta lost count and passed out…”

            “Four times, if I’m not mistaken. But, gods, I want you again. I love you so much, Drake.”

            “I love you too.”

            Remus kissed him again, gently this time, and Draco kissed him back a little deeper, parting his lips to allow him access. Remus pulled him closer, licking his lips before pushing his tongue in. He pushed another finger in, fucking Draco fast and hard, making the blonde moan in the kiss as he felt his ass being finger-fucked vigorously. The need for air forced Remus to pull back from the kiss.

            “Feels good, huh?” Remus grinned. “Tell me how you feel.”

            “It’s…mmh…It’s so…aah…” Draco replied, his breathing erratic as he barely could make the words through his moans. “So good…!! Ooh…!!”

            “Do you like when I fuck you?” Remus whispered in his ear. “Do you like when I come all over your skin, driving all sanity from you?”

            “Yes!” Draco screamed as he gripped Remus’ shoulders. “Yes! Drive me crazy again! Make me lose my mind, my Master!”

            “Your wish is my command.”

            With that, Remus rolled Draco over gently and slid into him slowly before starting at a fast pace, his hands holding onto Draco’s pregnant belly so as not let it jiggle too much and hurt the babies. Draco clawed and gripped at the bed sheets, feeling Remus’ massive rod pummeling into him as he almost screamed at the assault.

            “Mmh… So tight, even though I fucked you all night,” Remus breathed in Draco’s ear. “I wish I could fuck you all the time. Tell me your pleasure, my mate.”

            “S-So good…Oh, Remy, you’re almost there…!” Draco moaned as he felt the rod pressing just slightly against his spot. “Deeper…”

            “And let this end so soon?” Remy pulled back, teasing him with short thrusts. “I don’t think so.”

            “Please, please don’t tease me…” Draco whined in protest, looking like he was going to burst to tears in any given moment.

            Remus chuckled as he felt Draco’s hips move a little, wanting him to hit against the sweet spot, and the way Draco begged was too much for him to hold back. He kissed his neck where the mark was and started slow but deep thrust, hitting his prostate but careful not to harm the babies.

            “Yes! Yes! YES!!” Draco gasped at the feeling of seeing white hot flashes in his mind’s eye. Gods, how he loved this part.

            Remus kept up the pace before pulling out and moving Draco to straddle him as he sat and leaned against the bed post. He sat him down, pushing in again, this time a bit faster, reducing Draco into a moaning, drooling mess as he let Remus ravish him. He reached over to play with Remus’ nipples, trying to increase his pleasure a little. Remus groaned, fucking him faster, giving in to his own urge to fuck and claim his Mate again and again. Draco leaned forward to bite his shoulder, but not too hard to draw blood, as he let out muffled scream after another, feeling his incoming orgasm building within the pit of his stomach. Remus could tell from the voice that he was getting close and reached down to stroke Draco, growling his pleasure.

            “Come, my mate, come for me.”

            “Oh gods, I’m coming, I’m coming, I’m co—”

            Draco was lost in his words as the explosion within him occurred, staining both of them. Remus bit down on the mark, not hard enough to break the skin but it would further make the mark more obvious. Draco felt the bite, but his ecstasy from his orgasm numbed the pain as he felt Remus pulling out of him and coming all over his stomach and thighs. Remus panted from the orgasm and took his mouth away from Draco’s neck, licking the spot as if to say “Sorry”, in which Draco, after calming down some, turned his head to kiss wherever his lips can touch him, assuring the half-wolf there was nothing to be sorry about.

            “I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Remus asked as he kissed him back gently. “I don’t know what happens to me when you are around.”

            “No. You never hurt me,” Draco replied as he kissed his forehead. “You give me so much pleasure I don’t even know if it hurts or not.”

            “Well, I’m glad, coz I like fucking.”

            “Horny toad.”

\--:--

            Remus checked the calendar. As he calculated the days, he realized that Sirius would return with the hired help and Paprika in less than 2 days. Which means it was time to clean up the mess they’ve made all over the house as they made no place sacred with their primal heat indulgence.

            As Remus went to clean up the living room, the study, the bathroom, the stairs, the hallway and the kitchen (among other places), he remembered all of their sexual activity that happened there. It was like this heat of his was allowing his libido to run away from him in the past few days as he ravished Draco like he had never ravished any other that intensely. Of course he had been careful not to hit it so hard on the blonde so as not to cause a miscarriage, but other than that, Draco seemed to be enjoying it thoroughly.

            “What are you doing, Remy?”

            Remus turned to see Draco up and about, dressed in only his bathing robes. As enticing as he looked now, he knew the heat had to end soon. He could smell from Draco’s scent that his human heat was slowly subsiding, and he himself could feel the powerful burning sexual urge to gobble up his little blonde Master was starting to recede, and he knew by spring, he won’t be able to have those feral instincts again.

            “I’m just cleaning up. Master Black and his party will come back in 2 days’ time. Wouldn’t want him to see how we desecrated his house with our essence.”

            “Yup,” Draco chuckled. “He’d throw a fit if he finds out what we’ve been doing in here while he’s away.”

            “Are you fully awake now?”

            “Sort of, although the bed feels kinda cold without you.”

            “I’ll be there as soon as possible, my mate, just as soon as I get this done,” Remus hesitated for a moment before continuing, “You know this heat of mine won’t last. By spring, I won’t be able to fuck you as much as we are right now. Your heat has started to diminish as well.”

            “I know,” Draco replied. “I can tell from our last coupling last night. You were a little…reserved, so to speak.”

            “Not that I don’t want to fuck you and all, but with the heat gone, it’ll probably give you time to rest up. I don’t want to hurt you and our cubs.”

            “It’s OK, really,” Draco said as he laid his hands on his shoulders, “All I need to know is that you love me. That’s all I want, and you don’t really need to fuck me to prove that, although to be honest, I’m still craving it a little. Must the human heat you’re talking about on me.”

            “Are you too sore from yesterday?” Remus put away whatever he was cleaning—to hell with it now that his mate desired him—and caressed Draco’s hips, grinning as he saw the blush across his little mate’s fair cheeks.

            “Not really,” Draco shook his head, then kissed Remus’ forehead when the half-wolf gave him a skeptical look, “I’m OK, really. You gave me a really amazing night.”

            “I feel that every five minutes I am inside you in some form or another.”

            “Well…you are a man of…a million faces,” Draco sniggered at the last remark.

            Remus growled flirtatiously before picking Draco bridal style and carried him out to the backyard. Putting him down, he sat on the backyard bench and undid the fasteners of Draco’s bathing robes and stripped him naked.

            “Turn around, my mate. I have one more face to show you.”

            “N…Not here…People might see…” Draco tried to hide himself, blushing like mad when Remus stripped him without warning.

            “Then they will see,” Remus replied, then grinned when Draco made an indignant pout. “Would you like me to get your wand for you? You can cast a charm to let people not see you.”

            Draco nodded and quickly covered himself again. Remus quickly went upstairs to where Draco kept his wand—he was allowed to have it as long as he did not use it beyond the estate as per requested by Prof. Sinistra—and brought it over to his little beloved. Draco quickly cast a Silencing Charm and an Invisibility Shield throughout the backyard, and added a Reversal Charm on their surroundings to counter the outside cold, while Remus pulled down his own pants and watched, pulling out his cock and giving it a few strokes. He collected as much saliva as he could in his mouth before drooling them onto his palm to lubricate himself before sitting down, gesturing Draco to come over and stripped him again, guiding him to his cock.

            “All done now? Turn around and sit back on me very gently.”

            Draco nodded and sat down on him as gently as he could, unable to control a moan that escaped his lips as he was being filled.

            “So perfect,” Remus moaned as he reached around to stroke him gently with one hand while supporting Draco’s belly with the other. “Move your hips up and down. Show me you want me.”

            Draco moved his hips just as he asked. He bit his lip as he felt Remus’ hand stroking his length, and moved for a while before trying to aim it onto his prostate. Remus could hear the hesitation in his voice and pulled Draco against him.

            “Don’t muffle your moans. I want to hear them,” Remus said as his hips started to pivot in and out of Draco. “I want the whole forest over there to hear your cries. I want them to know how you feel as I fuck you deep and good.”

            Draco felt his sweet spot being ravaged and started letting go, his voice getting louder and louder until he was literally screaming.

            “Yes! Yes! YES! OH GODS, YES!!”

            “Call me your husband, your mate,” Remus licked Draco’s ear as he thrust harder. “Tell your mate what you want him to do.”

            “My mate…! My sweet, sweet husband…!” Draco screamed as his breathing became erratic. “Fuck me! Harder…! Deeper…! Fuck me with all you got!”

            Remus picked him up and changed positions, this time Draco was half in the bench and half out, his belly resting just nicely on the wood. Remus was on his feet, which was a better angle to fuck him with, and picked up the pace, going just shy of his superhuman strength but managed to control himself from pummeling through his little beloved. Draco screamed and clawed at the bench, trying to anchor himself but couldn’t focus because of the immense pleasure put upon him, what with the spot being literally pummeled, sending jolts of pleasure towards the pit of his stomach. Remus leaned over him, kissing his mark again and peppered more love-bites onto Draco’s shoulders, trailing his tongue along his neck like he was a delicious melting ice-cream.

            “I am going to pull out and come all over you,” Remus grinned, reaching around to lightly touch Draco’s straining cock, making the boy gasp. “Or maybe I should come in your mouth? How do you want it?”

            “Please,” Draco begged as he tossed his head from side to side, “cover me with your cum. Come all over me! I want it, I _need_ it!”

            Remus pulled out, pumping his cock until he came all over Draco’s back. He grunted and groaned out his release while Draco reached down to pump himself as well, releasing everything within him. Some of Remus’ cum got onto his cheek due to its projectile, so he wiped it with his finger and tasted it, making an erotic display. That sight made Remus, who was at the near-end of his heat, but still in heat nonetheless, hard again.

            “Big mistake, my mate,” Remus growled sexually as he reentered Draco’s ass, making him yelp both in surprise and pleasure. “Big, big mistake.”

            They went at it again and again until they were so weak with ecstasy that they ended up sleeping on the bench, with Draco sitting on his lap and snoring against his chest.


	60. Chapter 60

            “AAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH~~~~~~~~~!!!!!!!!!”

            The peaceful morning silence of the whole school condo of Kym was shattered by Harry’s bloodcurdling scream. Within seconds, Aaron, Rachel, Rebecca and, surprisingly, Judith came barging into Harry’s dorm.

            “What is it? What is it?? Are you alright, Har??”

            They could not see him anywhere in the dorm, but Rebecca soon located him in the bathroom, totally naked and totally horrified, his hands covering his privates. Everyone else came out of their dorms to see what the commotion was about, but with a wave of a wand, Rachel repaired the door and slammed it at their faces, demanding privacy. When Aaron came in and tried to approach him, Harry immediately became defensive, pushing him away.

            “No, no, no!!! Don’t look at me!! Don’t come near me!!”

            “Good gracious, Har! You were screaming just now like you were going to get disemboweled!” Aaron tried to hold him to calm him down but Harry was adamant to keep him away, crossing his legs in his attempts to cover his groin so hard, you’d swear his thighs were going to squeeze his cock into a pulp. “What is the matter with you? Why don’t you want me to come close to you? I just want to check on you!”

            “No, no, no, NO!!! Get the fuck away from me!!!”

            “Open your legs.”

            Everyone looked as if they had been Confunded when Judith suddenly came up to him in that superior tone and looked down at him with her arms folded. This was the first time they have heard Judith talk to him in a non-violent tone. Well, technically it was more of a commanding tone, but for once it sounded better than her usually snappy, icy remarks.

            “Wh…What?” Harry breathed; he was just as surprised as the rest of them at her sudden change of attitude.

            “It’s not like I’ve never seen a man bare before. Hurry up and open your legs.”

            Without warning, before Harry could resist, Judith has knelt down and spread his legs open for everyone to see. Aaron, Rachel and Rebecca gasped at the sight and Judith actually widened her eyes in shock, unprepared to see what was before them.

            There, instead of having a penis and a pair of balls like a normal boy should, was a girl’s clitoris and vagina between Harry’s legs. Everything else on Harry’s body was male, but his pussy was a tell-tale sign that he was lesser a man. Judith even reached down to touch it to see if it were real and was confirmed when Harry let out a whine and flinched. Everyone looked like they had just remembered how to breathe.

            “We definitely have a problem,” Rachel finally broke the ice, setting everything off.

            “Problem? You call that a _problem_?!” Aaron exclaimed. “Our best friend had just became a she-male with a pussy instead of a dick and you call that a _problem_?!”

            “Now, now, calm down,” Rebecca tried to calm him down. “There must be a perfect explanation to all this…”

            “Explanation?! What sort of explanation would you call that?! He was cursed, I tell you! He must be! When I find out who caused this, I’ll…”

            “Easy, Turunen,” Rachel warned. “Don’t go get your heads up in a bunch. Honestly, I would’ve expected a formidable rival like you to keep a level head.”

            “Now is not the time to discuss about our intellectual rivalry, Rach!!”

            “Why don’t you tell exactly what happened here, Percy?” Rebecca turned to Harry, accio-ing a towel to cover Harry up and trying to use her bubbly charm to pave the bumps.

            “I…I felt sick this morning…” Harry explained. “It…must be something I ate last night coz I was so sick I couldn’t get to the bathroom on time…I puked all over myself and the bed…then I wanted to shower and clean the sheets when…when I…I saw…”

            “Alright, Percy, we understand. Any idea what might cause this? Did you ingest anything beforehand? A spout of potions by accident, maybe?”

            “No…We learnt how to make Cure for Boils potion yesterday…I don’t remember eating anything rather than the usual meals yesterday.”

            “We better bring Har to the Medic Quarters,” Rachel suggested. “Maybe Ard-Rí Constantine can figure out what’s wrong with him.”

            “I…I don’t feel so good…” Harry’s hand flew to his mouth, his face going pale green.

            “You want to let it out first before we go?” Rebecca asked as she rubbed his back to soothe him.

            Harry jamming his head into the toilet bowl and a series of long puking was his only reply.

\--:--

            “Hmm, this is most interesting.”

            Aaron, Rachel, Rebecca and Judith perked their ears as Ard-Rí Constantine examined Harry. After Harry’s grueling puking session, Aaron offered to give Harry a piggyback ride to the Medic Quarters to see Ard-Rí Constantine, the medi-wizard of Kym Boarding School. Harry meekly explained the situation and was told to remove his pants and show it to him, in which Ard-Rí Constantine checked him from head to toe, taking his temperature, checking his heart rate, taking blood and urine tests and all the whatnot. After examining the sample of Harry’s discharge for good measure, he was standing there, rubbing his bushy chin thoughtfully and looking at Harry’s vagina with clinical interest.

            “Come on, Ard-Rí Constantine,” Aaron urged. “Don’t keep us in the dark. What is wrong with Har?”

            “Please do not rush the descendant of the High Kings of the old pre-Norman Ireland,” Ard-Rí Constantine berated in his thick gruff Irish accent, making the teens roll their eyes. “You youngsters these days don’t know the meaning of patience.”

            “Your title is no longer binding since your family had fallen out from grace and into fiefdom, Ard-Rí,” Rachel groaned. “We do not want to hear you clinging onto a lifestyle that is no longer yours, so act like the medi-wizard you are.”

            “Let’s not get too hasty, everyone,” Rebecca tried to laugh their bickering away. “No harm done in being proud of your heritage.”

            “Spoken like a true Irishwoman, milady,” Ard-Rí Constantine chuckled. “Now then, m’boy, I’m sure we’re all adults here and can converse in a mature manner. When was the last time you had sexual intercourse?”

            Harry blushed beet red before crossing his legs to cover his privates, looking at his toes.

            “T…Two months a…ago…during…Christmas hols…”

            “Did you have any sort of potion to…spice up your coupling?” Ard-Rí Constantine probed.

            “W…Well…” Harry stole a glance at Judith but decided not to reveal her for fear of tarnishing their relationship. “I…I got…a lust potion for a Christmas present…and…well…we did use it all up for the hols…”

            “Any chance of remembering what colour is the potion?”

            “It’s pinkish-blue in colour…” Harry tried to recall, “And bubbly in nature. But Sev assured me it was lust potion. He’s a very good Potions Master and he said he’d recognize the colour anywhere.”

            “Ah, yes, that explains it then.”

            Everyone looked anxiously at Ard-Rí Constantine for an answer, more so for Harry.

            “Your Sev may be a very good Potions Master, but he had allowed his hormone to run off on him before making sure of things. It is possibly, m’boy, that you ingested an impregnation potion.”

            “A WHAT?!” the more vocal of the group exclaimed at Ard-Rí Constantine’s deduction.

            “Well, from what my test results show, you definitely do not suffer from food poisoning,” Ard-Rí Constantine said as he showed Harry a couple of parchments revealing the incriminating test results. “Your blood work is good and there is no infection, and you see that little marking there in blue?” he pointed at the section, “That, m’boy, shows the tell-tale signs of your pregnancy. Two months pregnant, to be exact.”

            “H…How…How can…” Harry’s hand shook as he stared at the parchment in disbelief.

            “There is a possibility that you have taken a potion that is designed to look like a lust potion. You see, sometimes there are people who have a hard time to conceive unless they have intense sexual intercourse, but unless you have the stamina of Dian Cecht, there is no way you can go round after round without help. So potion makers and apothecary owners sometimes create impregnation potions that induces heavy sexual intercourse to make it complete, and the effects is almost very similar to that of a lust potion. The impregnation potion would be mixed together with a certain ingredient, usually a high-level ground buckhorn, to make it resemble almost like a lust potion in terms of colour, taste and texture, and it is that ingredient that causes the body to go into full blown sexual mode.

            “My guess is whoever got you that impregnation potion was totally fooled by the colour into thinking it is a lust potion and did not ask the apothecary owner properly in terms of its true nature. This, among the very few strongest impregnation potions for both hetero and homosexual couples, yield 100% conception rate because once the effects took place in your body and both of you started coupling, it detected you as being the receiving end of the sexual intercourse and increased the sperm count and sexual stamina of your partner and, because you are male, transmuted your male genitals into temporary female genitals as soon as you’re pregnant to help you carry the child to term. Once the gestation period is over and the baby is born, the effects of the potion will subside and your genitals will be transmuted back to its original state.”

            “Amazing,” Rachel breathed, looking as if she had just listened to the most interesting class in the whole world.

            “It’s not amazing, Rach!” Aaron scowled at her. “Har has turned into a she-male and bloody knocked up at the same time and that’s all you have to say for him?!”

            “Alright, alright, simmer down, everyone,” Rebecca coaxed, being the peacemaker again. “Is there any way to remedy this, Ard-Rí Constantine?”

            “Although I am quite against this,” Ard-Rí Constantine lamented as he rubbed his bushy chin again, “an abortion usually the only way to cure this because the effects will only be gone once the body detects the absence of the child. But if you want to, you can go discuss about this first with your partner and make a decision later. In the meantime, you will experience a bit of discharge for the first few weeks, but it’s normal because your body is trying to get used to having a temporary womb and vagina, so try to cut down on wearing briefs and start wearing boxers so as not to confine your genitals too much. Also, you’ll have to come back next week to have a check-up again so that I can prescribe you some pre-natal supplement potions. I guess…congratulations are in order.”

            With that, Ard-Rí Constantine walked away, leaving the group to their own devices. As Harry awkwardly put his pants back on, the group except Judith sat on the bed by his side, looking at him with concern.

            “So what are you going to do about this, Percy?” Rebecca asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. This is a joyous occasion, but you’re still in school, and in your first year no less, so…”

            “I…I don’t know…” Harry admitted, feeling a little queasy. “I’m…still trying to digest all this…”

            “Are you going to keep this quiet from your partner and abort the child?” Rachel asked bluntly, earning a glare from Aaron.

            “I would’ve expected you of all people to come up with this decision.”

            “Then what would you suggest he do, Turunen? Let him carry the child to term and be expelled at the same time? Or hide the pregnancy using whatever smart concealment spell you can muster up until he suddenly decides to give birth in the middle of class? It’s his future we’re talking about here.”

            “But the child is innocent,” Rebecca chided, “and his partner deserves to know about this, regardless his decision is to let him keep it or abort it. We can’t decide it on a whim like that.”

            “Guys,” Judith, who was silent throughout the discussion, finally spoke, “can you please stop talking as if Potter-Dumbledore is not here?”

            They all looked down awkwardly, realizing the error of their squabbles while Harry looked back up at her in genuine surprise, wondering why she was defending him at all.

            “So? Digested the news long enough, Potter-Dumbledore? What do you want to do about this?”

            “I…I don’t know…I really don’t know…” Harry covered his face with his hands, his shoulders shaking as he started to cry. “Oh god…What will Sev think about me…?”

            “Promise that you will not tell anyone about this!” Aaron said in a determined tone all of a sudden as he held Harry close to his chest.

            “What…?” Rachel and Rebecca said simultaneously but got a shooting glare as a response.

            “Promise this is between us until everything is settled between Harry and his intended! Swear it! And that means you too, Jude. Swear it!”

            “Alright, alright, I swear it,” Rebecca said as she crossed her heart and held up her hand.

            “Fine, just don’t go making me use the Unbreakable Vow,” Rachel replied as she imitated Rebecca as well.

            “Don’t worry, Har,” Aaron said as he crossed his heart as well. “We’ll help you through this. Your secret is safe with us, coz we’re all best buds, right, everyone?”

            While the others agreed, Judith just nodded quietly and crossed her heart with a stoic expression on her face.

\--:--

            “Can I see Potter-Dumbledore for a moment, Prof. Lightwing?”

            Prof. Lightwing, Kym’s Transfiguration teacher, nodded and gestured Harry to go to Casey. Picking up his books and having a million questions in his mind, Harry followed the old Headmistress all the way to the Medic Quarters, where Ard-Rí Constantine was waiting with a grave expression.

            “Sit down, Potter-Dumbledore,” Casey said as she gestured the boy to sit on a bed nearest to her. As soon as Harry did, she continued, “I know about your condition, young man.”

            Harry felt as if an electric shock just jolted through his chest as he heard the Headmistress saying this in such a grave manner. He turned to look at Ard-Rí Constantine, who shook his head in reply.

            “Don’t look at me, m’boy. My lips were sealed.”

            “Never mind who told me, Potter-Dumbledore,” Casey brought the boy’s attention back to her. “The important thing is that you should have consulted me as soon as your condition is made known. Albus has entrusted me to watch over you because of you being pursued by that madman, and I would’ve appreciated it if you had trusted me on this.”

            “S…Sorry, Headmistress,” Harry looked down, feeling rather ashamed. “It’s just…well, this was too much of a surprise for me, and I didn’t know what to do…”

            “Given the circumstances, I suppose it’s understandable, but you do know what this means, don’t you, Potter-Dumbledore?”

            “Am…Am I being expelled, Headmistress?”

            “I would like to avoid that as much as possible, since I have promised him my school as seclusion for you from that murdering madman, but Albus, and subsequently your intended, has to know about this.”

            “Y…Yes…I understand.”

            Casey sighed and placed her hand on his shoulder, “I will call them over and discuss this with Albus and come up with a compromising solution for all of us. Hopefully we will have the best of both results, eh?”

            Harry could only nod. As he watched Casey leave the Medic Quarters, thoughts of horror littered his mind. There was no way that Severus would let him keep this child. Sure, they have talked about having kids that night, but he didn’t think Severus would be serious. After all, he himself was more or less a kid to begin with and Severus was already having trouble trying to handle him, let alone another. He would agree to an abortion, he was sure of it.

            “Don’t look so terrible, m’boy,” Ard-Rí Constantine patted his shoulder. “I’m sure Headmistress Kyteler-Magee will figure something out.”

            Harry nodded mechanically, not even looking up at the medi-wizard.

            “Stay here, alright? I’m going to the Potions lab to renew my supplies, then I will examine you and have your pre-natal supplementary potions ready.”

            Harry didn’t reply and just quietly allowed Ard-Rí Constantine to leave him there alone. As soon as he was gone, Harry suddenly had the impulse to leave. The only thought that went through his mind was to leave Kym as far away as possible. Making sure no one saw him, he ran all the way to the school condo and into his dorm, grabbing his broom and making his way out towards the school entrance gate. He donned the Invisibility Cloak Albus had given him for Christmas and walked past the caretaker who was on gate entrance guard duty, feeling very grateful right now that Albus had got this for him. After making sure he was far enough and out of sight, he took off the cloak, tied it around his waist and flew off with the broom to the only place he knew where he could blend in with the people: Sidhe Street.

            Needless to say, when Ard-Rí Constantine returned to the Medic Quarter and saw Harry no longer sitting at the bed, he immediately started searching high and low throughout the school to no avail. He started to panic and made a mad dash to Casey’s office, trying to alert the Headmistress who was in the middle of the firecall with Albus and Severus.

            Severus, on the other hand, had been feeling out of sorts all day that day before he was called in by Albus to hear word from Casey, and when that news came in, he was overwhelmed by the prospects of being a father, but at the same time, ridden with guilt at his carelessness, not to mention riddled with questions on how a lust potion could turn out to be a impregnation potion instead. Albus was not too thrilled either of the thought of his young grandson being pregnant so young. His condition was far worse than Draco’s and he feared for him when Casey revealed the news. Their conversation, of course, was interrupted by the medi-wizard Ard-Rí Constantine.

            “Ard-Rí Constantine,” the duo saw Casey turning back to talk to someone. “You know better than to interrupt my calls.”

            “I’m sorry, Headmistress,” Ard-Rí Constantine apologized, “but this is an emergency! Potter-Dumbledore is gone!”

            “Gone?! What do you mean gone?!” Severus was the first to react.

            “How can you lose him?” Casey exclaimed. “I thought you were watching him!”

            “Y…Yes, but I went to replenish my supplies from the Potions lab,” Ard-Rí Constantine looked like he was going to throw a fit. “I only left him for a little while…”

            “Alright, alright, Ard-Rí Constantine, we’ll handle this. You keep a lookout just in case Potter-Dumbledore comes back.”

            “Yes, Headmistress.”

            “It looks like you will have to come over,” Casey sighed as she turned back to the duo. “I will readjust the magic around my fireplace so that you can Floo over here immediately. Wait for about 10 minutes before coming through.”

            The duo waited as instructed before quickly Floo-ing into Kym via Casey’s office fireplace. As soon as they were in, Casey rummaged through her drawers to find a bracelet that was studded with rhinestones before handing it to Albus. They noticed that the rhinestones were glowing bright red, flashing in and out and making a slight humming sound.

            “We occasionally do have students who tend to wander out of the school grounds without permission, so every new school term, we charm all of the first-years’ badges to have a psychic link with this bracelet. Whenever the badge is too far from its proximity it will light up and react, revealing dim residue of where the students’ last tracks were, and followed the tracks to search for them. It had served its purpose very well, and I think you can use it to track Potter-Dumbledore down.”

            “You find him, Severus,” Albus said as he passed the bracelet to the Potions Master. “I will stay behind to discuss about Harry and look out just in case he returns on his own.”

            “I intend to do that,” Severus said as he took the bracelet and wore it on his wrist. As soon as the bracelet touched skin, it revealed a misty pathway, showing the direction to where Harry may have gone to. Nodding at the two Headmasters, he borrowed a broom from the Gamekeeper and made his way to the school entrance gate. From there, the misty pathway soon broke into particle-like residue, revealing Harry’s last tracks that went skywards, indicating he travelled by broom, and soon he was hot on the trail.

            Meanwhile, Harry was getting some leers from men on the street. He had no idea that once he stepped into Sidhe Street, he had landed into the bowels of a lane equivalent to the likes of Knockturn Alley back in Hogsmeade, and from the looks of those men, he knew that they could tell he was a slave, or in his case, ex-slave.

            “Hey, baby, what are you doing in this place?” one of the men came up to him boldly and asked him.

            “Walking, of course. What does it look like?” Harry frowned, trying to act tough as he kept his arms around him.

            “Someone’s playing hard to get, ain’t he?” another approached Harry from the other side, grinning from ear to ear.

            “G…Go away. I’m busy.”

            “Don’t look like it to me, baby,” the first man grabbed him by the arm and pinned him against the wall.

            “Looks like someone needs to be tamed here, aye?” the other man grabbed Harry’s other arm and licked down his neck.

            “Get off me!” Harry stamped on the second man’s foot and tried to fight the first man off but his tiny stature was not doing him much of a favour. “I am not yours to do with as you please!!”

            “What was that?” the first man cupped his ear, pretending not to hear him. “You will do as we please? I like the sound of that.”

            “Yeah, I like the sound of that too,” the second man put his hand under Harry’s shirt to touch skin underneath, making the boy’s skin crawl in disgust as he tried to fidget away from him. “Feisty little thing, ain’t he?”

            “Oh yes, he is,” the first man cupped the boy’s ass. “I found him first, so I should have dibs on his ass.”

            “No big. I got dibs on his cock…”

            “You will have dibs of no sort.”

            Before the second man was about to touch Harry between the legs and before the two guys realized what happened, they were thrown off balance using the Disarming spell, then felt themselves being lifted off the ground and flung against the wall back and forth. Harry felt ten times relieved that he had ever been as he saw his savior.

            “Severus!”

            The said Severus stomp towards him and held him close to his chest as he cast the Cruciatus curse on both of the men, in which Harry grabbed him and held onto him for dear life as he sobbed. Severus let the men suffer for a while, watching them as they screamed and writhed in pain that felt like eternity for them, before lifting the curse away.

            “If I see you bastards again, I will make sure your mothers will never be able to recognize your bodies and have to scrape your pieces off the walls.”

            With that, he turned and left with his little beloved in his arms. Severus took the liberty of hauling a carriage to send them back to Kym instead of flying there, and throughout the journey, Harry continued to cling on him, but they rode in silence, neither of them speaking to each other. Harry knew he was going to be punished when they got back to Kym, but he didn’t care; he knew he deserved it.

            As soon as they reached Kym, the first thing Severus did was not taking him to Casey’s office, but to the school dorm. He made him sit on the bed while he helped to fix up a bath. Once the bath was ready, he literally tore off Harry’s clothes and burned it with a spell, as if to get rid of any trace of the two men’s essence on it, then pointed at the bath tub.

            “Get in there, now.”

            Harry obeyed, getting into the tub and moved to the far end. Severus didn’t join him in the tub, but accio-ed a sponge and shower gel, then lathered the sponge with it before scrubbing him from head to toe, doing it almost with a vengeance to get rid of whatever imaginary prints of those men who touched his beloved. All the time, he didn’t say a word, even though he caught sight of Harry’s vagina and widened his eyes a little, and Harry couldn’t help but start sobbing again. He could tell that his beloved was so mad at him. _Was he cleaning me up so that he could send me away?_ Harry thought in horror, praying to all gods of religion that he wouldn’t leave him. He dreaded that more than anything else.

            Severus noticed him sobbing and kissed his tears away. After he thought he cleaned him enough, he helped him out of the tub and dried him before putting him beside the bed. He went to the wardrobe to get him the big baggy shirt that he first wore when he came into Severus’ life and helped him dress.

            “S…Sev…?” Harry tried to break the ice, confused at the odd treatment he was given. Severus was silent for quite a long while as he dried his hair with a towel and a drying spell before he actually said something.

            “Lie down, you need to rest.”

            “You…You’re not going to punish me?”

            “I will if you don’t do as I say right now,” Severus replied in a more serious tone as he gestured Harry to the bed.

            That got Harry up onto the bed in a thrice, pulling the covers over him. Severus sat on the bed after him, staring him down with arms folded across his chest.

            “Why did you run away?” Severus asked. He knew the reason, but he wanted to hear it from his little beloved himself.

            “Be…Because I could…” Harry replied, looking down at his hands.

            “I detest lies, Harry.”

            “Then punish me,” Harry said in a challenging tone, turning over to face him.

            “Do you really want that?” Severus asked, raising a brow.

            “I ran away. I should be punished.”

            “Fine. Get up. Sit up.”

            Harry got up, bracing himself for the worst. He was prepared to be beaten black and blue or spanked, just like his past Master had done, but without warning, he felt a loud, hard slap across his cheek, forcing him to go down on his side. Tears stung his eyes as he held onto the throbbing cheek. He had never expected that to hurt so much coming from Severus, an adult with the strength that was no different than any of his other Masters, maybe a little more. Guess the saying is true that it is the ones that you love that hurt you the most. But then, in an unexpected turn of events, Severus lunged forward to hug him tightly close to him, speaking in a choked voice.

            “Where do you think you’re going with our child?! What if you had a miscarriage along the way? Or worse? It’s my child too!” Severus scolded, unable to contain a sob that escaped his lips. “Don’t you dare run away from me again! Don’t you dare...!”

            “I…I never thought you’d be serious…” Harry let loose his own sobs as well as he wiped the tears he felt trickling down from Severus’ eyes on his cheeks. “I…I thought you would…surely make me have an abortion…”

            “Have you ever considered that I have a right to know about this, regardless how I would react? I would never make you have an abortion. I love you, you know that. I love you and I would cherish everything that is you, including our child.”

            “I didn’t want to chance that. I have thought about it, but now I knew I truly don’t want to get rid of this baby. It’s your baby, your flesh and blood, the family you never had…I was still in shock…” Harry sobbed even harder as he clung onto Severus in a desperate attempt for forgiveness. “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry, Sev…I’m so sorry…”

            “Just promise me never to do a stunt like this again, you hear me?” Severus said as he hugged him close and stroked his back. “Shh…It’s alright now…Shh…”

            “I promise…I swear…” Harry said between his sobs. He leaned up to kiss him, in which the older man reciprocated, kissing him back fully to show that he had forgiven him.

            “I love you, pet.”

            “I love you too, Sev.”

            After Harry calmed down some, Severus lay him back down on bed and caressed his still flat belly affectionately.

            “Your Headmistress told us about how you were able to conceive after the medi-wizard explained it to her,” Severus said, removing the covers and lifting up the shirt to have another good look at his pussy. “I can’t believe I could just miss that out. What kind of a Potions Master am I if I can’t even tell the difference between a lust potion and an impregnation potion?”

            “It’s not your fault, Sev,” Harry replied, putting a hand on Severus’ lap. “I was just as careless.”

            “You’re a first-year. You are not meant to know what an impregnation potion is unless you wish to pursue a Potions career like I do, and you will only learn that in Potions Advanced Academy under the Ministry’s jurisdiction.”

            “W…Why did you slap me…? I thought you would spank me or beat me with a stick, just like my past Masters did to me when I misbehaved…”

            “I slapped you because you asked to be punished, and I did, because you behaved foolishly. I didn’t want to spank you because first and foremost, you’re no longer a slave or a little child still wet behind the ears, and most importantly, I might hurt our child if I did that.”

            “Oh,” Harry replied, then hid himself under the covers, “but that doesn’t change the fact that I’m no longer a boy. I’m an ‘It’.”

            “Don’t say that, love. Having a vagina doesn’t make you less a man. In fact, you look a little sexier now. Besides, look on the bright side, at least it’ll be easier on the birth. I’ve heard stories of how much more painless it was for women to give birth rather than men because of that magical opening between the balls and the anus, which is what Drake would experience when his time comes.”

            “O…K…I guess I am a little lucky in terms of _that_ department.”

            “I’m going to consult with that friend of yours who gave us the potion,” Severus grumbled. “I will give her a piece of my mind and demand her to tell me from which apothecary she got it so that I can give _that_ person another piece of my mind.”

            “D…Don’t be too hard on her,” Harry said worriedly. “It was probably an honest mistake. I’m sure she genuinely meant well…”

            “Why did you not report her to the medi-wizard about her? You could have told him that you got the potion from her and then we can all track down who the seller is. For all we know the seller could be selling it illegally through a road-side stall and he could have packed up and gone halfway around the globe before we knew it. What if she bought something that could be dangerous to your health, or worse?”

            “I…I just…I just didn’t want to…”

            Severus could tell from Harry’s face that he wanted to say something about her, but was unable to due to circumstances possibly between him and the girl. He sighed and stroked his head, deciding not to push the issue and find out about it by himself.

            “It’s been a long day for you, pet,” Severus said as he kisses the area he slapped to soothe it. “Close your eyes and rest.”

            “Will you stay here with me, Sev? I don’t want to be alone.”

            “I’m not going anywhere, pet. Don’t you worry.”

            Before he could wrap his arms around Harry to allow him to snuggle close, an eagle owl suddenly flew in through the window with a letter. Severus went pale as he recognized both the eagle owl and the letter.

            It was an express owl designated for the Wizengamot and the letter was a Ministry Howler.

            As soon as the letter was dropped onto Harry’s lap, the letter came to life, its seal morphing into a pair of fat lips and dictating in Dolores Umbridge’s voice:

* * *

 

_Dear Mr. Snape,_

_We have received intelligence that you have committed a sexual act towards a sexually underage wizard (13-and-a-half years old) at his place of residence on the 28 th of December for a consecutive number of days with the aid of an impregnation potion, resulting in the alteration of his physique and his pregnancy of 2 months and 2 weeks._

_The severity of this breech of the Decree of Child Morality Rights is equivalent to the result in your expulsion from your position as Potions Master from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but fortunately the Ministry of Magic has revised its decision._

_By the decree of the Ministry of Magic, you are hereby summoned to a full criminal trial at the Ministry of Magic at 10 a.m. sharp tomorrow, at which time an official decision will be taken._

_With best wishes,_

_Yours sincerely,_

_Dolores Jane Umbridge_

_Senior Undersecretary_

_Ministry of Magic_


	61. Chapter 61

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a little help from the GoF book on Igor Karkaroff’s hearing and the OotP book on Harry’s hearing to help me with this chapter, as did the final parts of the last chapter

            Severus entered the Wizengamot courtroom nervously, though his face tried to remain as calm as possible. A heavy silence ensued as he went to the center of the room, making his presence known. He had heard tales about this place but never once had he truly set foot into this, not even when he was a teacher trainee under tutelage of the Ministry office. It was dark with a hint of brownish-black in between due to the colour and nature of the stone walls, and it was dimly lit with torches, adding to the eeriness of the atmosphere, and the benches in levels surrounding him filled with probably the entire population of the Ministry, including the highest of all that seated the higher officials of the court, made the Potions lab in the dungeons of Hogwarts looked much cheerier.

            “Take your seat, Mr. Snape,” Cornelius, who was in charge of the courtroom, gestured to him. “The trial will begin soon.”

            Severus stared at the seat before, swallowing in trepidation. This was the seat that had held down many convicts in place, including the mass murderer Tom Marvolo Riddle, as they were tried and prosecuted as the Ministry saw fit. As soon as he sat on it, the chains immediately came to life and bound him from the chest down, holding him in place like he was the mass murderer himself. He could really understand how it felt like to be in the mercy of a boa constrictor for it sure felt like one right now.

            “Comfortable, Mr. Snape?” Cornelius asked in an almost jeering tone before adjusting his glasses to read the customary preliminary notes for his assistant Percy Ignatius Weasley (who, Severus remembered, was officially disowned by the Weasley family after a very loud disagreement about his loyalties towards the Ministry rather than the family) to take, “Criminal trial of the 28th of February into offences committed under the Decree of Child Morality Rights by Severus Snape, resident at Snape Manor, Spinner’s End…”

            As Cornelius carried on announcing the interrogators in charge of this case, Severus’ eyes darted around quietly to look at his surroundings. The atmosphere itself was tense and grim without needing the extra help of the setting of the courtroom and all the higher officials of the court were wearing the familiar plum-coloured robes he saw once in the Daily Prophet in a picture of them existing the courtroom after interrogating a wizard of breaking the rules regarding the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. They were all looking down at him in disapproval and some in contempt, and from the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Lucius Malfoy was among the crowd sitting at the lower benches, though he could not turn to make sure because of his bound state. And amongst the people, there sat the dreaded Rita Skeeter nibbling at her quill as she wrote down whatever was going on at the moment. Severus groaned inwardly. If she were to work in the Muggle world, she would probably be the most successful tabloid reporter in all of London.

            “Bring forth the victim and his guardian.”

            Severus looked like a deflated tire when he heard those words coming out of Cornelius’ mouth. A hush streamed through the courtroom as his little beloved Harry and the boy’s adopted grandfather Albus Dumbledore came in. Dressed in a new set of Kym Boarding School uniform (because Severus had burnt off the other one he wore yesterday), the boy looked around timidly like a sheep in wolves’ lair, while Albus sported a calm face, mirroring the serene misty blue robes he was wearing. Two chairs materialized at either side of Severus and Albus led Harry to one of them before sitting down on the other.

            “Well then, we shall read out the charges for Severus Snape,” Cornelius said as he produced another parchment from his pile and adjusted his glasses again, reading it out loud for everyone to hear, “The charges against the accused are as follows: That he had committed pedophile against Harry James Percival Jr. Potter-Dumbledore, adopted grandson of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Minister of the Ministry of Magic, in a knowing, deliberate manner and in full awareness of the illegality of his actions, which constitutes an offence under the Decree of Child Morality Rights, in addition to the offense of using impregnation potion to induce pregnancy on an underage wizard, constituting the offence under the minority section of Improper Use of Magic relating to administering potions to minors. What do you plead, Mr. Snape?”

            “Not guilty,” Severus replied indignantly, almost immediately bringing a rush of murmured words, mostly in a disgusted tone.

            “And you bear witness to this plea, Dumbledore?” Cornelius turned to Albus with an accusing glare.

            “Yes, of course,” Albus replied. “In fact, I speak as the witness for the defense.”

            Again, a rush of murmurs echoed throughout the rooms, looking at Albus in the same disapproval as they had on Severus. Some of them were laughing a little in amusement at the incredulity of Albus’ actions, while others frowned and shook their heads, sure to themselves that Albus had just dug his own grave. A few were frightened, either for him or of him, and a minor few were clasping their hands and smiling encouragingly at Albus, trusting his instincts. Apparently, Albus’ reputation as a wise member of the Ministry of Magic and the wizarding world did not go to waste more or less.

            “Very well,” Cornelius huffed, then turned to Severus with a grave look on his face, showing that he was in interrogation mode. “You are Severus Snape of the Snape Manor, Spinner’s End?”

            “Yes,” Severus replied.

            “And you are aware that you have just committed sexual act on an underage wizard?”

            “Yes, I am.”

            “Knowing that your actions as considered pedophile?”

            “Yes, but…”

            “And you are aware that you have administered impregnation potion to said wizard?”

            “Yes, but I was…”

            “Knowing that this is considered a serious offence in intentional negligence of administering potions to minors?”

            “I wasn’t aware that…”

            “And knowing that impregnating an underage wizard is also considered an offence under the Decree of Child Morality Rights?”

            “Will you please let me speak?!” Severus burst out impatiently, getting really annoyed at being interrupted at every trivial question of the terminology of his offence that he had known by heart.

            “Ahem.”

            Severus scowled. He recognized that fake high-pitched clearing of the throat anywhere.

            “The Chair recognizes Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister,” Cornelius announced.

            “You will speak only when you are allowed to, Mr. Snape. Do remember that you are being interrogated here.”

            “Doesn’t give you the right to bludgeon me with questions without a chance to defend myself,” Severus grumbled.

            “Hush, Severus,” Albus whispered to him to calm him down before standing up. “If I may be so bold to ask, Cornelius, what is the source of your intelligence in finding out about this offence?”

            “We received it from a reliable source,” Cornelius replied hastily. “That is all you need to know.”

            “But I am sure under the Wizengamot Charter of Rights, the accused has the right to know by whom he is accused from.”

            “And by the Wizengamot Charter of Rights,” the Minister challenged, “the source is given rights to remain anonymous for privacy and safety reasons, so please do not try to think that we do not know the rules of our own house.”

            “Of course not, Cornelius,” Albus smiled politely, sitting back down on his seat.

            “The Chair now recognizes Amelia Susan Bones for the questioning of the victim.”

            “So, young man,” the woman interrogator named Amelia leaned a little forward to face Harry, “you are Harry James Percival Jr. Potter-Dumbledore?”

            “Y…Yes,” Harry replied timidly. “Har or Percy to my close friends.”

            “Will you please tell us how old are you and what year are you studying in?”

            “I’m…I’m 13 ½ years old and…and studying first year in Kym.”

            “First year for a 13-year-old?” Dolores raised a brow, speaking in a voice that was obviously an exaggeration of surprise. “How is that possible?”

            “You may very well know by now that my grandson was once a sex slave who had never received a decent education throughout his earlier years in life,” Albus voiced out. “He was home-schooled during the transfer of ownership from Severus to me by some of the best students in Hogwarts I could find, and as soon as he was free from slavery, he was assigned by the best private tutor I could get him. The tutor Mr. Figgs claims that he has a bright mind and can complete his studies within 5 years without having to go to school, but I wanted to give him a chance to be in a real school environment, thus…”

            “Yes, yes, we get the point, Albus,” Cornelius cut him off impatiently. “Basically he is behind his studies and is given special privileges to have a normal school life. Like as if we do not know about how you always manage to play favourites and pull your strings with everybody you meet.”

            “Why are you studying in Kyteler-Magee and not in Hogwarts to be with your grandfather?” Amelia continued to ask Harry.

            “Because of Riddle,” Harry replied, drawing attention to the crowd, especially Rita Skeeter. “He may be after me, so Grandpa Albus and Severus asked me to go to school there.”

            “So you are the mysterious little boy whom Albus is desperate to protect,” Kingsley, acting as one of the interrogators, exclaimed in awe.

            “At the cost of many lives of people who related to you one way or another in blood, unfortunately,” Dolores commented icily, making Severus glare at her.

            “You are pregnant, are you not?” Amelia continued her questioning.

            “Yes…” Harry blushed, looking at his shoes. “My school medi-wizard said I’m about two months along.”

            “And how is this conception possible?”

            Harry tried to explain as accurate as possible what Ard-Rí Constantine had told him about the impregnation potion that was made to look like lust potion.

            “Ah, yes, one of the very few strongest impregnation potions around,” Cornelius nodded in understanding. “Something a very advanced potion maker the likes of a Potion Master would create, and yet a potion maker of your standards could not even detect the difference. It does raise more suspicion of your actions, does it not, Mr. Snape?”

            “Am I being implied to have deliberately created this potion?” Severus growled.

            “It is not implied, Mr. Snape, it is suspected and possibly confirmed to be so.”

            “Look, I admit that I was negligent on that part, but I did not create that potion. I would not be so irresponsible to impregnate a child and be so foolish to let myself be caught doing it. Besides, that potion was given to me by Harry’s friend who claims to have bought it as a Christmas gift for him from an apothecary. If you could just…”

            “A likely story, Mr. Snape, considering that both the victim and the so-called friend are minors. I’m sure we have heard this well-rehearsed story time and time again, using minors as a convenient crutch to run away from your responsibilities.”

            “I am not running away from my responsibilities! And I do not make up tales! It is the truth! Harry, tell him!”

            “Do not incite the victim to speak on your behalf, Mr. Snape. You are being on trial here.”

            Severus felt like a kicked dog right now as he looked helplessly at Harry for a split second before regaining composure.

            “Now then, child, tell us,” Kingsley took over the questioning. “Is it true what Mr. Snape said, that you have received the potion as a gift from your friend?”

            “Y…Yes,” Harry replied hesitantly.

            “Can you tell us who?”

            “I…” Harry stopped a little, stole a look at Severus before looking away. “I…I cannot say.”

            “Why not, child?”

            “Because…Because she…she might be upset with me…and that she will be worse a friend than she already is…She’s in the same house as I am, that’s all I can say…”

            Severus felt like a child who was told that Santa Claus was not real and that Christmas was not going to arrive this year. Even being faced by the most powerful figures of the wizarding world, he still held steadfast to his secrets. Does he not know that it would further incriminate him? Does he not know that the girl who had given him the impregnation potion was the key to prove his innocence even just a little bit?

            “You do understand that by carrying this man’s child, you will be expelled from school.”

            “Yes.”

            “And you still wish to keep the child?”

            “Yes.”

            “Why burden yourself with this?”  
            “Because…Because it’s Severus’ child. It’s his flesh and blood, _our_ flesh and blood. And because…I love him.”

            Severus’ heart would’ve melted there and then if it weren’t been killed off by Dolores’ haughty laugh.

            “Hah! What does a 13-year-old child know about love? This is just further proof that he has been thoroughly corrupted by Mr. Snape’s unholy thoughts!”

            “You’re just a toad too blinded by power to see that love knows no age or boundaries, _Umbridge_!” Severus sneered at her name, making the woman lose her control as she slammed both her palms on the bench.

            “ _ENOUGH!!!_ ” Dolores squealed in that high-pitched voice of hers, followed by loud murmuring of others who were equally outraged at Severus’ outburst. “I will not stand for this! This is clearly contempt towards court. I say we make a vote to declare him guilty of all charges and be done with it!”

            “If I may intervene,” Albus raised a hand to calm the courtroom down. “I was under the impression that we are here to examine Severus’ offence, not of my grandson’s?”

            “Yes, you are right on that,” Cornelius massaged his temples, clearly disturbed by the scene before him. “Whether or not the nature of obtaining the potion as you claimed is true will be further investigated, but the offence still stand: that you had sexual intercourse with an underage wizard and impregnated him with your child, which clearly shows that you have broken more rules than one.”

            “Yes, but I never meant any malice in all this,” Severus replied. “I did it out of the purest intention. I did it for love. I am in the process of courting him under full consent, and I admit that it gotten a little out of hand, but it was for the sake of courtship nonetheless. We never planned for any of this to happen, much less to let him have a child so soon.”

            “Is it true, Albus? That you have consented to him courting your grandson?”

            “Yes, I do not deny it,” Albus replied. “Severus had always been like a son to me before Har came in. I would trust my grandson to no one but him.”

            “Regardless of your feelings for the child, Mr. Snape,” Amelia chided, “rules are rules, and you have broken them, courtship or not.”

            “If I am here to hear about my offences only to know that I am going to be prosecuted, go ahead and say it now and do not waste my time.”

            “Let’s not be hasty, Severus,” Albus noted quietly, then addressed the courtroom. “Ladies and gentlemen, it is true that I have consented into allowing Severus to court my grandson. Severus should not be punished for committing something from the affairs of the heart, which, I assure you as he did, was of the purest intention. Harry should not be punished either because he is still a child who has a life ahead of him to lead. He and Severus had been together through thick and thin ever since Severus bought him off from the business. If anyone were to be blamed for this misfortune, I should be for not being the careful grandfather I should have.”

            “You would like that, wouldn’t you?” Cornelius said in a jeering tone. “Being the all-out hero and cover for these two cretins? May I remind you, Albus, that the truly accused here is Mr. Snape, not you? The one who committed this offence is Mr. Snape, not you. You trying to take all the blame and cover the punishment for him doesn’t change the fact in the eyes of wizarding law that it was he who did all this. If young Harry here was still a slave, we would not be having this trial right now and you can do whatever you want with him, but now that he is a free man, he will be protected under the decree. As you have said before, we are all under the impression that we are here to examine Severus’ offence and no other.”

            “Of course we are, but we both know that there is no smoke without fire, and there are certain parties here being at fault here, especially me as Harry’s grandfather who is supposed to have Harry under my responsibility.”

            “We are not here to make a martyr out of you!” Dolores said impatiently. “We are here to decide on Severus’ standing in this trial. Now, all in favour with Severus being guilty…”

            “Have you not considered if you have placed the verdict on Severus, what it might cause on my grandson’s safety if he were to be expelled?”

            “Well, if it makes you feel any better about our upcoming verdict,” Cornelius exchanged knowing glances with the Wizegamot members before announcing, “The court calls for Auror Tonks to approach the courtroom.”

            Percy quickly got up to fetch Tonks over into the courtroom. As she was led inside, she was genuinely surprised to see Severus sitting on the chair being bound like a criminal, and was also equally surprised to see Albus and Harry as well, but seeing that she was in a courtroom and that the atmosphere was not permitting enough for small talk, she put on her professional face and stood before the Wizengamot.

            “Full name and occupation?” Cornelius asked in standard procedure.

            “Nymphadora Tonks, Metamorphmagus and Auror,” Tonks announced, her face grimaced for a split second at her disgust over her own name.

            “You, along with the rest of the Auror team under the supervision of Albus, are in charge of tracking and relocating every member of the Potter bloodline to designated safe-houses and safe-guard them from the advances of Tom Marvolo Riddle?”

            “Yes, I am, along with Moody, Kingsley and Rufus, among others.”

            “Tell the courtroom, Ms. Tonks, about the progress of the mission.”

            Tonks used the Potter lineage family tree as an example, using her magic to make a projected image for the courtroom to see, dictating that they have managed to relocate whatever few that was left of the Potter family to safe-houses designated by the Ministry within their jurisdiction, the last on the list being Harry, while the rest of the tree branches were almost all crossed out save a few that Tonks had just mentioned being relocated. She also described the constant patrols over both the wizarding world and the Muggle world for traces, clues or tracks of the mass murderer’s whereabouts, and were confident that they were on the right track and getting close, although Severus could tell from the little quirks she made on her face and her eyes that it was far from the truth.

            “Thank you very much, Ms. Tonks,” Cornelius nodded, seemingly proud of himself. “You may leave.”

            “May I ask what is the purpose of this elaborate presentation?” Albus asked.

            “It is to show you that we have everything under control, and that we have already thought way ahead of you on what to do once we announce the verdict.”

            “Those in favour of declaring Severus Snape innocent of all charges?” Amelia asked.

            Severus looked up, hoping that there were at least a few people who would support him, but to his dismay, besides Harry who had timidly held up his hand even though it was not his decision to make, not one single hand was raised among the members of the courtroom. The fact that this courtroom was totally biased and leaning towards his demise came in full circle on him.

            “Those in favour of declaring Severus Snape guilty of all charges?”

            Severus didn’t need to look up to see that the entire courtroom raised their hands up, fully incriminating him.

            “This is a one-sided trial,” Albus protested. “You bombard Severus with his sins and did not bother to look at the big picture or the other side of things. I implore you, please reconsider…”

            “Luck is not on your side, old man,” Cornelius smirked smugly as he looked at Albus as if he was some insignificant dirt on someone’s ground to be stepped on. “The verdict is already set. Severus Snape, you are guilty of all charges. You are to be stripped of your employment from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and stripped of your title as Potions Master from the Ministry office starting this very minute.”

            “No! No, no, no! Please!” Harry started bursting into tears. “You can’t do this! Sev is not at fault here…”

            “Shush, young man, or I will hold you in contempt of the court. Of course, not all is loss.”

            The trio at the center of the courtroom looked up at him in a mixed expression of hope and dread.

            “The Ministry of Magic had not lost its compassion entirely. We do recognize that if this verdict were to pass, there will be significant dangers towards the young man who had survived Tom Marvolo Riddle’s murder and became one of the very few slaves from the business who is freed from that life thanks to the heroic efforts of his Master. Therefore, the Ministry has also decided due to Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Minister of the Ministry of Magic, not fulfilling his responsibilities of a grandfather to the young man and allowing this to happen, he is deemed an unfit parent to raise the boy. Therefore, his status as grandfather and his rights of an adoptive parent to be null and void and Harry James Potter shall be put under the custody of the state.”

            “WHAT?!” both Albus and Severus exclaimed, while Harry was literally shocked speechless.

            “You wanted to bear responsibility over this mishap, didn’t you, Albus? This is the perfect way to do it. Harry James Potter will no longer bear the name Dumbledore in his birthright and he will be under the full responsibility of the Ministry. Being that he is part of the Potter bloodline and the main target for the mass murderer Riddle, he will be under protective custody of the Ministry of Magic along with the other Potter families we have managed to rescue until Riddle is apprehended. His school will be notified of his upcoming absence and carry on with his studies here within this building under the supervision of personally selected tutors from his school.

            “As for his condition, on the account that he is carrying a child, which is unacceptable given the circumstances of its conception under the Decree of Child Morality Rights, he will be sent to the Ministry Medical Wing first thing tomorrow morning to have his unborn fetus removed by the best medi-wizard and/or medi-witch, and under the supervision of the council of the Ministry. After the abortion, he will be taken care of until he is fully recovered before being relocated into protective custody.”

            “No! NO!!” Severus shouted as he struggled in his binds. “You can’t do that!! It’s my CHILD!!”

            “A child conceived out of wedlock and breaking the rules of the decree is no child of yours, Mr. Snape.”

            “This is unacceptable!” Albus scolded. “This is my grandson we’re talking here! He is too young to have an abortion! Are you trying to kill him?”

            “As I recall, Albus,” Cornelius said with an almost pure satisfaction in his tone at Albus’ helplessness, “you have been stripped of your title as his grandfather. He is no longer of your concern. He is in our custody now and is to be dealt with as the Ministry see as his best of interest…”

            “Fuck you, Cornelius!!” Severus screamed. “Fuck you and your interests!! You’re just doing this to spite us all!! This is an outrage!!”

            “The verdict has been made. The court is now adjourned.”

            So saying, a couple of witches came over to take Harry away. Harry immediately went into a fit and clung onto Severus.

            “No, no, no!! Don’t take me away!! Help me!! Severus, help me!!”

            “You keep your hands away from my pet!” Severus struggled again in his binds as he tried to bite the women’s hands away from Harry. “Don’t touch him!! Harry!!”

            “Severus, no!! Help me!! Grandpa Albus, don’t let them take me, please~!!”

            Albus didn’t need to be told twice. Using the Disarming charm, he pushed the witches away and tried to take Harry in his arms, but somehow, as if expecting this to happen, more of the chains that bound Severus materialized and duplicated themselves before wrapping around Albus’ limbs, holding him in place. One of the chains was wrapped so tightly around Albus’ hand that held the wand that he was forced to let go, dropping it onto the floor. The witches regained composure and returned to take Harry, who continued to cling himself tightly around Severus’ neck, not wanting to let go.

            “Don’t let them take me away, please! Please, Sev, save me~!!” Harry begged and struggled when the witches laid their hands on him. “No, no, no, let go off me~!! Don’t let them take me, Severus, don’t let them take our baby away~!! Please~!!”

            “Let go of him!! Don’t touch him!!” Severus struggled, only to make the chains tighten in response, bruising him. “Pet, pet, look at me—get your hands off him, you bitch!—Look at me! You’re going to be alright! I will get you out of this, I promise! I will get you out—don’t touch him!—and we will be together again, please, believe me! I will save you, I swear!”

            “No, no, no…I don’t wanna go…I don’t—SEVERUS~!!!”

            “Harry! HARRY!!”

            Apparently Kingsley, who saw that the two grown witches couldn’t even pull away a small boy, got a little impatient and went over instead to take over, using his huge physique and strength to tear him away from Severus and hoist him over his shoulders. Harry tried to wriggle out of him and stretched his arms out desperately to get to Severus, but he was placed strongly on the crook of the Auror’s neck, leaving no room to escape.

            The entire courtroom soon echoed with agonized screams of a man bound in the Wizengamot chair and a boy taken away kicking and screaming in an Auror’s arms as the trial came to an end.


	62. Chapter 62

            Harry was sitting alone on the bed in a dim room with only a few candles to light the place. Being that it is a room designated by the Ministry, it was very practical and screamed no-nonsense, although there was a hint of classical posh in style in between, but Harry couldn’t care less if he was staying in a crappy old barn or a dingy stable.

            After the verdict was made, Cornelius wasted no time in establishing his power over Harry. He was told never to try and contact either Albus or Severus under any circumstances and was not allowed to go anywhere without an escort, which was rather annoying because they have hired someone from the Department of Mysteries who had the uncanny talent of sniffing out Harry’s intentions to slip off his watch before he even thought of it. He had to watch helplessly as Albus’ adoption papers were given the “NULL AND VOID” stamp and was made to sign the papers agreeing to the terms of being under the full custody of the state. Whatever he had with him at the time was dumped unceremoniously into the room he was designated and was told by his escort who stood guard outside the room to stay there for the rest of the day—almost like house arrest—until the next day comes for him to be taken to the Ministry Medic Wing to have his pregnancy terminated.

            Harry hugged his legs against his chest, thinking about all that had happened in just the span of one and a half hours spent in the Wizengamot courtroom. He couldn’t believe that he had caused his beloved Severus to lose his job. He even found it hard to believe that he had caused Albus to lose his parental rights over him and made himself get separated to both Albus and Severus. And the worst part was that he would soon lose the child and no longer belong to his beloved. Harry laid a hand on his still flat belly and let out a trembling sigh before burying his face in his knees.

            Soon he heard small chatter outside his room and the door unlocked. He turned around in hopes that he would see Severus or Albus or both coming in to rescue him, but he knew it was wishful thinking as he saw Percy carrying a tray of food inside instead.

            “What are you doing here?” Harry scowled as he glared at Percy with a vengeance.

            “I have come to bring you dinner, Potter, as you can see,” Percy said as he put the tray on the table. “And I am sent here to watch you eat.”

            “Go away,” Harry grumbled, hiding his face back on his knees. “Take it away. I’m not hungry.”

            “Please don’t make this hard on me, Potter. Minister Fudge insisted that you eat to keep up your strengths.”

            “Yeah, right. So that he can drain it out of me once he ordered the medi-wizards to cut me open and tear my baby out of me? Thanks for the gesture, but no thanks.”

            “I don’t like this more than you do, but I’m just following orders, Potter.”

            “Oh, and I suppose you followed his orders like a dog because you’re grateful for all the paychecks you’ll be receiving. That’s typical!”

            “Don’t go around killing the messenger, Potter,” Percy frowned. “The person you should hate is Prof. Snape. He got you into this.”

            “Shut up!” Harry shouted as he shoved him. “He didn’t do anything but love me!! You have no idea how far we’ve come and how much we’ve been through to be together! I have no reason to hate him!! Who are you to judge me?”

            “You’re only making this hard on yourself, Potter.”

            So saying, Percy took off the lid of the tray, revealing a nice helping of shepherd’s pie, mashed potatoes, green beans and carrots and a glass of papaya milk, and sat on a chair beside Harry’s bed, waiting for him to eat. An uncomfortable silence lingered as Percy was watching him seriously, as if trying to will him with his mind for Harry to pick up the utensils to eat while Harry felt his eyes burrowing onto him like invisible darts, making him feel worse than a goldfish in a bowl. Finally, Harry let out an exasperated groan and snapped at Percy.

            “Can you please just get out of here and leave me alone?! I said I’m not hungry!”

            “Please, Potter. You must eat. You have a baby to feed…”

            “I’m not going to make this my baby’s last supper!”

            “This is not about your baby, Potter. This is about you. Your health and wellbeing is at stake here…”

            “Why must I listen to you?! I don’t expect you to understand, since you care about your job more than your own family!”

            Percy frowned again, “Where have you heard this? My brother Ron, I presume?”

            “Yeah, so?” Harry gave him a defiant look. “You’re officially the black sheep of the family following behind a master licking his boots like a dog, so don’t expect me to fall for your crap!”

            “It doesn’t matter what my family thinks of me or how you think of me. The main thing right now that I must follow orders to make sure that you eat.”

            “The baby won’t be with me anymore once they’re done with me tomorrow, so why bother?!”

            “It may be an unnecessary move, that I must agree, but at the moment,” Percy forked a small piece of shepherd’s pie for Harry, “you really need your strength. If you like, I can feed you…”

            “I don’t need your pity!!!” Harry cried as he slapped the fork away. “I just want to keep my baby, IS THAT SO HARD TO ASK?!”

            “It is a sad thing to happen, but verdict has already been given. There is nothing you and I can do about it.”

            Harry could no longer hold it in. His heart was bursting into a million pieces and felt as if they were flowing out of his eyes along with his pain, guilt and sorrow. Again, he hid his face on his knees and let loose his wails, crying out everything that he had been bottling in ever since the verdict was made. Unperturbed by Harry’s sudden outburst just now, Percy came close to Harry tentatively and put his arms around his shoulder, allowing him to cry his heart out. After about 15 minutes of crying, Harry soon calmed down, reduced to the occasional sniffles.

            “You’re right. I don’t understand how it feels to be in your shoes,” Percy said, prompting the boy to look up at him, “and I admit I don’t wish to be so. But if you truly love Prof. Snape as you claim, you will have to be strong for him.”

            “Wha…How…?”

            “Grit your teeth and bear with it. Go through it with your head held high. You’re young. There will come a time where you are ready to have children, but in the meantime, you are not in a condition to expand your brood. Just be strong and pull through, and one day you will find someone of your age who will be fit enough a father to let you procreate. That’s all I can say.”

            A long silence ensued between Harry and Percy as they looked at each other’s eyes with mixed feelings before Harry finally sighed and nodded.

            “You’re not really helping me feel any better…” Harry commented as he wiped his tears away. “But thanks for listening and putting up with my tantrums anyway.”

            “Mother always said I’m not good with words anyway,” Percy chuckled a little sadly, then reached over to take the glass of papaya milk. “At least have something to drink then? I will share the pie with you and I’ll tell them you ate all of it. I am a tad hungry from all this courtroom drama anyway.”

            Harry considered for a while before taking the papaya milk.

            “I guess I’m OK with eating just a little bit.”

            As Harry slowly sipped his papaya milk, a cruel smile creased on Percy’s lips as he pretended to move his fringe aside, covering the blonde streaks that were slowly forming.

\--:--

            “How could you do this? You swore along with us!!”

            Judith folded her arms in defiance at her three friends who were cornering at her angrily at the Astronomy Tower, even the bubbly Rebecca. She somehow knew she was going to be discovered. She was ready for it. She had been waiting for this to happen a long time ever since she went off on a tattle-tale spree to the Headmistress about Harry’s pregnancy.

            “Ah, so you’ve found me,” Judith rolled her eyes, saying in an almost bored matter-of-fact way. “How?”

            “We heard Ard-Rí Constantine talking to Headmistress Kyteler-Magee just now about Harry,” Rachel replied angrily. “And your name was mentioned.”

            “How could you be so heartless and report Harry’s secret to the Headmistress?!” Aaron exclaimed. “You promised him you wouldn’t tell!”

            “That’s right, I promised, but I never promised him. I had to buy some time to let the hype die down a little so that I could tell Headmistress Kytler-Magee without you suspecting it’s me. He was carrying an illegitimate child within school grounds and he is underage. He could get expelled if he were to be found, so I’m just doing him a favour and made it sooner than later.”

            “But…But you swore!” Rebecca asked as she flailed her arms in annoyance. “You swore not to tell! You crossed your heart!”

            “So I crossed my fingers as well. What’s the big deal? It was the right thing to do.”

            “How could you call this the right thing to do? Percy trusted you!! You’re…You’re his best friend!”

            “Friend?” Judith laughed bitterly. “Do you honestly think I would be stupid enough to be friends with a brat of an ex-slave like him, let alone _best friends_?”

            “How could you?! How dare you?!” Aaron shouted as he shoved her against the edge of the tower. “You are no different in terms of experience with him! Not once had he ever looked down on you! He put his full trust on you not to reveal his secret and this is how you repay him?”

            “Then he has been a fool long enough,” Judith huffed remorselessly at her crimes.

            “If you had any shred of compassion for Harry, you would have kept your mouth shut!” Rebecca scolded although she and Rachel have yet to understand about what she meant by Harry being an ex-slave.

            “That is a foolish movement. Emotions are always weaknesses of man.”

            “Bullshit!” the usually level-headed Rachel cussed at her. “Betraying him, betraying us… _that_ was a foolish movement! You got some nerve!”

            “Get real, Rach, you never gave a hoot about that boy! All you care about was your books and your hunt for a rival! You ignore him just as you ignore me by burying your stupid face into those thick books of yours and view everyone like they are beneath you! And you, Becka, are always with that annoying laugh of yours and always with your head up in the clouds thinking about your little darling Cyril Quigley of the Kenmare Kestrels to come back to you for your holy matrimony! You don’t bloody care about Potter-Dumbledore either! You don’t even know whether Quigley is really even faithful to you!”

            Without warning, Judith reached over to tear off the ribbon tied around Rebecca’s neck and threw it off the tower. Rebecca let out a horrified scream and would have jumped off after it if it weren’t for Rachel to hold her back. Aaron, seething with anger, stomped over to Judith and slapped her so hard that her lip bled. Rebecca slumped to the floor and sobbed bitterly at the loss of her symbol of promise given by her beloved and Rachel was too busy trying to calm her down to berate him for doing that, but part of her felt that she deserved it. Judith casually nursed her cheek and licked the blood off her lips, spitting it onto the floor.

            “You’ll have to do better than that, Aaron. Barty Jr. is best at torturing people. This is child’s play.”

            “Is that all you can think of?” Aaron said as he shook Judith by the shoulders. “Your pain, your misery, your tragic sorry life?! Can’t you think of anyone but yourself?! You’re not the only one in pain, you know!”

            Oh, I’m not, huh?!” Judith waved his hands sarcastically in an attempt to push Aaron away. “What do you call my life right now then? I was there, Aaron! I saw _my parents_ murdered _my brother_ , the only person who had ever loved me, right in front of _my eyes_!! They killed without mercy, damn it, and they sold me off to a man who treated me lesser than a human being! If it weren’t for Potter-Dumbledore’s existence here, I would’ve been better off!!! You should know how I feel about that brat!!!”

            Soon it was an all-out yelling match between Aaron and Judith, completely oblivious to the fact that Rachel and Rebecca, who never knew Judith beyond her life as a slave and of Harry’s history, were watching and listening at them. Judging by the way Aaron and Judith were getting at each other’s throats, they seemed to care less about them finding their secret as they try to outshout each other.

            “Har had done nothing to you! He had done nothing but try to be friends with you! He wanted to make peace with you and have you acknowledge his existence and you continuously give him a hard time, and yet he still tries! What is it about Har that you hate so much?!”

            “He bloody exists, that’s what,” Judith said bitterly.

            “What the hell are you talking about?”

            “Exactly what I meant. When I saw him for the very first time, I knew immediately that he is a slave, or used to be one. The mere sight of him brings back everything that I have been trying to put behind. It’s already bloody annoying to have to go home to be subjected to all that perverted shit, and I came to school to forget about it, not to be constantly reminded of it, and it’s all that Potter-Dumbledore’s fault!

            “I swear I wanted to kill him there and then, but then you had to be there and be all hunky-dory pals with him, and I found myself being a fool and played along with your little fiasco. I was hoping I would break his neck or something while you’re not looking, but you had to be around him all the time, torturing me with his presence. As if I haven’t had enough of that at home, only to come back to see Potter-Dumbledore walking around like he owned the place pretending his past didn’t exist.”

            “So that gives you the right to hate him? Just because he was a fucking ex-slave?!”

            “That’s right! You were always with me before he showed up! You were always there for me, now you’re always there for him! Where has my best friend gone to, huh?!”

            “That’s not true, Jude. You’ve already known my feelings. I’ve made it very clear to you that day in Sidhe Street…”

            “I don’t believe you! You never love me! You only want my body, not my heart! You’re just like Barty Jr.! You’re just like the rest of them!! He shouldn’t be here at all! He should just go back to where he came from! He should’ve just stopped trying to pretend to be my friend and leave me alone! Better yet, he’s got all the makings of a slave! He should be sent back to the business and be off with it!!”

            “You’re just jealous, aren’t you? Jealous that he was close to me, jealous that he could be normal when you couldn’t, jealous because he is free and you’re not, jealous because you don’t have someone who truly loves him and had gone to the ends of the earth to save him from the business, jealous because…”

            “Yes, yes, YES!!” Judith yelled exasperatedly, tears stinging in her eyes. “Yes, I’m jealous! I’m jealous because he looks so carefree and so happy when I’m not! I’m jealous because I knew right away that he used to be in the same boat as I am now and yet he gets all the good stuff and I don’t! I’m jealous because I got a scumbag for a husband and he got a good man for an intended! I’m jealous that he had everything in the world and more and can be the normal little child everyone loves, even you three! _I’m jealous of everything that he has!!!_ WHY DO YOU THINK I MADE HIM THINK YOU GUYS NEVER GAVE HIM ANY CHRISTMAS PRESENTS AND GAVE HIM THAT IMPREGNATION POTION?!”

            “Wh…What are you talk…”

            “So that’s how it is.”

            The quartet looked up to see Severus looking like he was going to murder somebody. Judith gasped and covered her mouth. How much has he heard?

            “M…Mr. Snape,” Aaron said as he cowered away from him a little, feeling a pressurizing aura coming out of him as he glowered over to Judith. “W…What are you doing here?”

            “Harry’s grandfather and I are here to clear his belongings,” Severus replied, not looking at him. “He will not be coming to school for the time being.”

            “Is…Is he alright…?” Rebecca asked, momentarily forgetting to mourn for her ribbon after all that outburst between Aaron and Judith.

            “Is he expelled?” Rachel probed as well.

            Severus didn’t reply. His tunnel-black orbs were fixated on Judith’s ruby-red eyes in a demanding force of cold anger, making the famous Ice Queen and Rebel Beastess of Kym cringed in fear at his presence.

            “Wh…What are you looking at?” Judith asked defiantly, pretending to act tough.

            “Where did you get the impregnation potion from?” Severus demanded.

            “I…I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

            “I’ve heard everything you had just said and I have witnesses to prove my claim. You cannot hide from me. Now tell me where did you get the impregnation potions from?”

            “I…” Judith hesitated, then looked away. “I bought it…from Sidhe Street. That’s all I remember.”

            “You’re lying, and I detest lies. _Levicorpus_!”

            Aaron, Rachel and Rebecca stared in horror as Severus cast the Body-Raising charm on Judith, dangling her dangerous out of the edge of the tower. Judith struggled and screamed, the sudden rush of blood going down to her head as she dangled there upside-down by her left ankle, her robes almost covering her face and her skirt revealing her lacey black underwear. Aaron blushed for a moment upon seeing this before regaining composure and gripped at Severus’s robes.

            “Mr. Snape! What are you doing?! Let her go! Put her down!”

            “Oh, I will put her down alright either way,” Severus said as he glared coldly at Judith, “depending on how she will respond to my questions.”

            “Let me go!! I told you where I got the potion!” Judith screamed, the commotion starting to attract attention down below. “Let go of me, you pervert!!”

            “I usually do not do this, not even to my own students at school, but you leave me no choice. You will tell me where you truly got that potions or the last thing you will ever see would the grass 50 feet below.”

            “You can’t do this!” Aaron shouted as he pulled at Severus’ robes to no avail; Severus just wouldn’t budge. “This is illegal in more ways than one! You hurt her and I will kill you myself!!”

            “I’m sure you will,” Severus said in a voice barely whisper, but just as dangerous. “But mark my words, young man, you do not wish to mess with me. I am not only a Potions Master of a prestigious school, but one of the most powerful aristocrats who have learnt more Dark Arts than you can ever imagine existed in your school syllabus, and I will not hesitate to use it. One flick of a wand and you will all be all at my mercy, and nothing in the world can or will save you because I have the power and the money to make all this as if it never happened.”

            If it weren’t for the fact that his love was in danger, Aaron, along with Rachel and Rebecca, would’ve hightailed out of there with their tails between their legs to search for a hole to hide in after hearing such threatening deep words coming from the lips of a man scorn.

            “Now then,” Severus reverted his attention back to Judith who was still struggling in her predicament. “You owe me an explanation, young lady.”

            “Why should I tell you anything?!” Judith retaliated. “I don’t owe Potter-Dumbledore anything! He had it coming!”

            “Your actions had caused me to lose my job, my title as Potions Master, Harry’s suspension from school, him no longer being Albus’ grandson and being under the custody of the Ministry of Magic, our separation and the termination of my child, and you say he had it coming?! You have left me for naught and caused more than just one party to suffer the wrath of your envy and you say you do not owe Harry _anything_?!”

            “W…What…?” Judith widened his eyes in horror. “It…It can’t…”

            “It already has,” Severus replied with a suppressed choked voice. “He has officially become the property of the state and tomorrow morning he will be taken to a medi-wizard to have my child killed. I _will_ rescue my beloved from their clutches, and I need all the evidence and information I can get to do so. And I _will_ kill you for it if I have to!”

            “I…I just…I just wanted him to leave…I didn’t want him to…”

            “Talk, Jude!” Aaron begged. “Just tell him the truth!”

            “Yes, Jude, just tell him everything!” Rebecca joined in the begging.

            “Tell him the truth and get it over with, Jude!” Rachel urged as well. “This is not worth dying for, woman! Just tell him!”

            It took about 5 minutes of 3 teenagers yelling at her and a threatening drop from Severus’ wand to force her to loosen her tongue.

            “Alright! _Alright_! I’ll talk!!”

            Severus used the Levitation spell to bring her back onto the solid ground of the tower before muttering the counter-spell to release her from her state. As soon as she felt grounded, she cowered in a corner and started spouting everything, from the day she went to visit her brother Terran’s grave to meeting the mysterious hooded man who gave her the potion, describing in as much detail as she could remember of the hooded man’s features, including his snakehead cane that kept his wand.

            “Malfoy…” Severus hissed, slamming his fist angrily at the wall. “I should’ve known!”

            “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…I’m so sorry…” Judith sobbed, rocking to and fro as she covered her face with her hands, tears of remorse staining her cheeks.

            “Sorry is not going to undo what you have done, isn’t it?”

            “Rub it in, Mr. Snape, why don’t ya?” Aaron glared at him for a while before coming to her and held her close in his arms, hushing her and rubbing her back to calm her down.

            “I…I just wanted him to leave…I never wanted him to…”

            “Shh, shh, shh, it’s OK, Jude. It’s OK. Everything will be alright…”

            “Severus?”

            Severus turned to Albus who had come looking for him. He looked the disheveled children before him in mild curiosity before turning his attention to Severus in a grave expression.

            “You must come quickly. I have received news from the Ministry just now.”

            “What’s wrong? Is it about Harry?”

            “Yes, but…”

            “But what?” everyone present except Judith exclaimed in unison.

            “Harry is missing.”

\--:--

            “Rise and shine, pretty boy~!”

            Harry winced and stirred as he slowly woke. _Is…Is it the next day already?_ he thought as his mind slowly cleared from the sleep. He remembered talking to Percy over dinner, then suddenly feeling very sleepy. In the back of his mind, he remembered that he was supposed to be prepped for the abortion the next day and had reminded himself to put up a fight when that day comes.

            Although he would’ve put up a fight if he knew where he was, because he was definitely not in the Ministry-designated room he was originally in.

            “W…Where am I…?”

            “You are in the Malfoy mansion, of course!”

            Harry rubbed his eyes to focus and saw that instead of someone important-looking from the Ministry, he was facing a fat, creepy ratty-like man, grinning at him with his buck tooth sticking out, eyeing him like he was a piece of cheese. He was dressed moderately well, but still needed a little fashion sense, even for a wizard. Instinctively, he cowered back and looked around, soon realizing after his mind cleared that he was in Draco’s room as he remembered being in the first and last time he was here. Well, used to be, anyway.

            “Who…Who are you? Where’s Percy?”

            “Oh, your Percy is not going to be around,” the ratty man replied. “Never has, never will be, yes…yes…Peter Pettigrew is the name, but you can call me Wormtail, yes, you can…”

            “Wh…What am I doing here? How did I get here? I thought…”

            “You thought you were in the Ministry building? Au contraire, my little slave boy.”

            Harry looked up to see Lucius grinning maliciously at him, walking towards him with a scary aura of pride he knew too well not to mess with. Harry shivered at the sight of him, cowering away even further, making Wormtail laugh amusingly at the boy’s antics.

            “Oh, don’t be such a stranger, little slave boy,” Lucius chuckled as he sat at the foot of the bed. “We have shared much pleasurable times together, remember?”

            “Go away! Don’t come near me! I…”

            His words were caught in his throat as he looked up to see another person coming in sporting the same scary aura of pride, only probably ten times stronger than Lucius did. A handsome man with straight, long-flowing silver hair that reached almost to his waist tied into a half-ponytail, he wore a richly designed robes the colour of forest green with a velvet weaving of tree vines around the hem and on one side of it embroidered in silver and white gold thread. Despite his hair that gave him the impression that he had experienced and withstood the test of time, he did not look a day older. On the contrary, he looked like had not aged a day over 30. His haunting reddish-black snake-like eyes was enough to tell Harry that this was the man Severus and Albus had been trying to protect him from.

            “It’s…It’s you,” Harry breathed. “Riddle. The man who killed my parents.”

            “My, my, such a feisty little boy we have here,” Riddle chuckled, his voice so sinister that it’ll make dungeons and dark caves look a children’s playground. “It is such an honour to finally meet you.”

            “I have been wondering when you are going to show up as well.”

            “Leave us,” Riddle said as he waved a wand to open the door wide, gesturing Lucius and his ratty slave Wormtail to give them some privacy.

            “But, milord,” Lucius protested. “What about your prom…”

            “In due time, my dear Malfoy. Now leave us.”

            Wormtail readily obeyed, tugging lightly at Lucius’ sleeve, urging him to leave as well. Lucius hesitated for a moment, wanting to speak his mind, but finally resigned to Riddle’s wishes and left the room. As soon as they were gone, Riddle quickly waved his wand to close and lock the door and cast it with a Silencing Charm.

            “Now we are truly alone with no one to bother us,” Riddle smiled nowhere near sincerely. “Ah, and I don’t think we need this concealment charm anymore, do we?”

            So saying, Riddle pressed the tip of the wand on Harry’s right side of the forehead, muttering what sounded like a counter-spell. The boy felt a sort of numbing sensation on his forehead before the charm melted away, revealing a scar that had the shape of a lightning bolt on it. He touched the scar with a sort of alienated feel to it. He had long forgotten about this scar ever since the business cast the concealment charm to cover it so that he would be worth higher in the auction. Riddle took an elaborate breath and pushed the boy’s hand away before fingering the scar with the tip of his forefinger.

            “Ahh, such a beautiful thing to behold, isn’t it, boy? This is proof that you were almost killed by the merciless mass murderer Tom Marvolo Riddle. I must’ve held back a little and ended up letting the Killing Curse nick your head instead. I would’ve done you in if it weren’t for the fact that the presence of the Aurors had distracted me, but no matter. You’re here now. Well then, got a name that goes with that pretty face of yours, sweetheart?”

            “What’s it to you?” Harry huffed as he backed away as if the mere touch of him was like poison.

            “Oh, I dunno,” Riddle smirked. “You are going to be here for a while, might as well let me call you something.”

            “Well, I got a name for you, ass. Voldemort. It’s French for ‘flight of death’, coz you go flying around killing innocent people, which included my parents!”

            “Voldemort, hmm…” Riddle thought as he tapped his chin. “Menacing, creepy, dangerous and fearful. A rather good choice. I might consider that.”

            “Why did you say I am going to be here for a while?” Harry demanded. “If you want to kill me because of my parents, why don’t you just get over with it?!”

            “Everything in due time, my boy. I’m sure you’re curious as to how I finally manage to catch you, are you not?”

            Harry was curious, but he wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that as he glared at him.

            “Oh, tracking you was definitely not easy, my boy,” Riddle ran his finger along the boy’s hair, making him cringe. “I had to hunt down many of your blood relatives just to find you, and it’s sad to say that you don’t have many friendly relatives at all, ever since you were sold into the business. None of them knew where you were, not a single one. Neither of them even bothered to keep in touch with your parents, and much less when they were dead and you gone out of the wizarding regular citizens’ picture. And then it struck me when I looked through your family tree and discovered that one of your relatives is married to dear Malfoy’s wife’s predecessors, making you slightly related to their family.

            “I met dear Malfoy and found out he’s pretty useful, considering him being under the Ministry of Magic with vast amounts of intelligence at his every beckon and call. Of course, to use his mansion as base of operation and as my hideout, we had to get rid of people that may stand in our way, which is why I had to strike a deal with dear Malfoy and make him get rid of all of his hired help and his slutty little wife. It’s a shame, really. I do miss the luxuries of being served by the hired help like I used to, and I do miss the pleasures of the body with such a beautiful woman such as she, but it is a necessary evil. I’m sure you have read in the Daily Prophet about dear Malfoy’s wife being prosecuted and sent to Azkaban quite recently.”

            Harry didn’t reply, but he did remember back then when he borrowed Aaron’s copy of the Daily Prophet citing about Narcissa’s arrest and prosecution. _So that’s what it’s about,_ he thought quietly.

            “Controlling that little bitch in heat 24/7 was as easy as teaching grandmothers to suck eggs. Just a flick of a wand and a bit of the Imperius Curse and she would flash in public without even trying. I swear, blondes can be really dumb sometimes,” Riddle laughed more to himself than anything. “All we had to do was to make her go on a killing spree of everyone except dear Malfoy, then construct a fake memory for dear Malfoy—which is a piece of cake for my standards, by the way—to be taken by the Aurors that is so incriminating and so convincing, they will have no choice but to give her the guilty verdict. Malfoy never truly loved that woman anyway; he let them take her away like she was a piece of used rag.”

            “You…You can do that…?” Harry breathed. He had seen Albus occasionally extracting his memory to be put in the Pensieve, but he never thought that memories can be constructed and fabricated.

            “I am, as you call me, Voldemort,” Riddle said proudly, seeming to have accepted Harry’s nickname for him. “I can do anything.”

            Harry snorted in response.

            “Anyways, as soon as hindrances were out of the way, we set out on looking for you. I had my slave Wormtail here become his Rat Animagus form and have him scour around Hogwarts to spy on your little beloved Severus Snape and your darling grandfather Albus Dumbledore to see if we could have any leads as to your whereabouts, while at the same time, I continue to hunt down your relatives to rid myself of any loose and ends and see if I could strike gold with them. Those Aurors never saw me coming; I was always a step ahead of them because I had dear Malfoy to alert me on the whereabouts of your relatives and also of the Aurors’ every move and plan. I swear they looked like they were Confunded every time I manage to outsmart them.

            “Wormtail finally proved his worth when he caught sight of your grandfather making small talk with the Headmistress of your school via firecall, talking elaborately about you. He described how she looked like to us and dear Malfoy found her based on her description on the school registrar records to find out where your school is. But, of course, we could not just simply barge into the school to get you. It would bring too much attention and spoil the surprise.”

            “So…So you…you used Judith to get to me?” Harry’s train of thought finally clicked.

            “Correct, my boy! You definitely have your parents’ wits!” Riddle, now known as Voldemort, grins maliciously at him. “Dear Malfoy, as soon as he found out where your school is, had gone through the entire students’ records to find out if your name was there and if there was anyone he knew from his chain of friends that had children studying there, and lo and behold! He had found the Light family with their daughter Judith Cecelia Light studying in the same house and living in the same dorm as you were. The Light family has slightly close ties because their son-in-law-by-contract Barty Crouch Jr. is one of dear Malfoy’s closer associates and he more or less tried to find out about your little dorm mate’s dark secrets.

            “Once he found where she usually frequented, all I had to do was to create the impregnation potion and ask dear Malfoy to pass it to your friend to pass it to your beloved Snape. Oh, it’s not that hard to create this potion. It’s all in looking for the best quality of buckhorn. And your friend was so eager for you to go away that she took it without even thinking about whether it was dangerous for you or not. We patiently waited for the news to happen and got word from Wormtail when he spied on your grandfather and your beloved’s conversation about your condition and dear Malfoy only needed to hint it to the Ministry. The rest is history!”

            “But…But how did I get here?” Harry demanded. “The Ministry is heavily guarded. I had an escort guarding outside my door! There is no way you can get me out of there without…”

            “Ever heard of Apparating, my boy?” Voldemort raised an amused brow at Harry’s confused look. “Well, don’t blame you. You’ll only learn it in your 6th year anyway. Dear Malfoy is a master in Apparating, even when the area he is in has counter-measures against it. He only needed to use Polyjuice to impersonate someone to drug you before Apparating you straight into his own home.”

            “Then…” Harry was struck. “Then, Percy that came with my dinner is…is not…”

            Voldemort laughing quietly confirmed his suspicion.

            “Well, what are you waiting for?” Harry challenged. “You’re going to kill me, aren’t you? Do it then!”

            “Kill you?” Voldemort laughed again, louder in amusement this time, before he took his chin and scrutinized his features. “I’m not going to kill you. Where is the fun in that? Now, how about a name for your Lord Voldemort here, eh, pretty baby? Or would you like me to call you Potty, since you look so much like a little boy who has such a potty mouth?”

            “Fuck you, Voldemort! Get away from me!” Harry yelled as he pushed him away harshly, cursing inwardly at the school rules of not allowing wands outside school until he’s graduated. He could really use it right now.

            “Looks like I’m gonna have to teach you some manners.”

            “Going to rape me? Very original.”

            “No. To be honest, I’m not exactly in the mood for that at the moment, but you are still going to be taught a lesson.”

            So saying, Voldemort whispered a spell to magic Harry’s pants away, before pulling him until he lay face down on the bed, with half of his body from the chest up lying across his lap with one arm holding the boy down. From that gesture, Harry knew exactly what he wanted to do to him.

            And he was not going down with a fight.

            “Since you are in a delicate condition, I will go easy on you by using my hand.”

            Without warning, Voldemort lay a first swat on Harry’s behind. Harry called out in pain. It had been a very, very, _very_ long time since he was actually spanked and feeling it again brought painful memories he had long since put behind him. He tried to struggle out of him but Voldemort put more weight on his arm to hold him down.

            “You are being punished, Potty. Stay still or else.”

            “No, shit. Asshole!”

            That resulted into a harder spank.

            “From now on, you are to forget you were ever free and ever had a life outside your slave persona. You may not be my slave legitimately but you still are to call me milord and you will obey my every command. Understand?”

            “GO TO HELL!!”

            “I warned you.”

            With an exaggerated sigh, Voldemort spanked him as hard as he could, timing the pain right and not allowing it to dissipate in every blow. He had plenty of time to kill during his captivity in Azkaban and he had developed a strong hand from patiently winding his arm out of his chain binds, trying to counter the magic that held him down, and he was about 40% free when Wormtail finally rescued him from his cell with the help of the Dementor, but it was an accomplishment nonetheless, something he did without the help of wand or wandless magic, but of pure physical strength. And he took real pride in that.

            Harry, on the hand, was trying to grit through it and bear with it as best as possible, but because of his pregnancy, his senses were heightened, which included his sense of pain. By the time the 10th spank came around it was too painful, and by the time the 15th came around, Harry was about to cry. When the 20th came he was sobbing for it to stop, unable to bear it any longer. But most importantly, he didn’t want Voldemort to carry on inflicting damage to his child. In a twisted sort of way, he was rescued from having his child terminated, and he wanted to protect this baby at all cost. Finally Voldemort stopped at the 25th spank, but he pinched one of the swollen butt-cheeks and held it there.

            “Now, will you listen to my every command?”

            “Yes…” Harry wanted to curse but held his tongue this time. “Yes…milord.”

            “Good, and to make sure you remember that…”

            Voldemort slapped about 5 more times before letting his hold on Harry go, turning Harry into a sniffling mess on the bed. He got up and stood over Harry for a while before taking his chin again.

            “Now, let's start over. What’s your name?”

            “Harry, milord,” Harry replied, trying hard not to sound defiant lest he got punished again. “Harry James Potter.”

            Voldemort considered and shook his head, “Hmm, too plain, too old-fashioned and too corny. Your parents didn’t really have much of a sense for names, did they?”

            Harry wanted to retaliate but knew better than that.

            “You should be given a new name. Something befitting of your status, your life and your attributes.”

            Harry waited with bated breath as Voldemort tapped his chin to think. It felt almost the same as when he was in the Wizengamot court waiting for the people to make a verdict on Severus.

            “Ah, yes, of course!” Voldemort laughed as he snapped his fingers. “Why haven’t I thought about it before? You gave me a name in a foreign language, so it’s fair enough I gave you one too, and I know just the perfect name, though I can’t recall whether it’s French, Hebrew or Latin. From this henceforth, you will be known as ‘Liat’, which means ‘You are mine’.”

            Harry winced as he felt Voldemort’s touch on his cheek as his head was tilted to have his ear close to his lips as he whispered icily.

            “We are going to have so much fun together, Liat. I look forward to it.”


	63. Chapter 63

            Severus sat near the window sill of Harry’s room in Albus’ home, musing with a face darker than a thunderstorm cloud as he looked out, a copy of the Potter lineage family tree rested on his lap. Almost every few minutes, he would quickly shoot a glance at it, making sure that Harry’s name was still on that tiny little branch seated between the branch of his parents’ name that were crossed out, heaved a sigh of relief before looking out again, repeating this action over and over again.

            Ever since the news of Harry’s sudden disappearance was made known to the public, the media was on a roll. Every paper in the wizarding town caught word of it and was spreading like mushrooms popping out of a clear field after a night’s shower, like daisies on a spring morning, making every literate citizen start to question the safety and the competency of the Ministry. Percy, who was last seen with Harry by Harry’s escort, was immediately taken into questioning both using the Veritaserum and using the Pensieve to view his last memories, but they both prove that he was elsewhere when it happened, indicating an insider, and an imposter at that. The Aurors then discovered Apparating residue within Harry’s room, further proving their theories. Everyone else was then questioned, but so far they could not come up with any suspects. Cornelius tried to pacify the press and insisted that everything was under control, but those who knew Cornelius and the Ministry for what they really are, it was far from the truth.

            Severus’ predicament was not made any better either. Despite the fact that he had brought Judith as the person to procure the potion to him forward to the Wizengamot court as proof to at least lighten the sentence and have Aaron, Rachel and Rebecca as his witness upon hearing Judith’s confession, their decision still stood. Without evidence of the bottle of potion (which unfortunately Severus had thrown away after he and Harry consumed), they could not prosecute Lucius as being the person who gave the potion to Judith and they adamantly refused to perform Legilimens, let her consume Veritaserum or extract that memory from her mind under the basis of her being a minor. Severus could tell that they refused to do so for fear of being proven wrong and look stupider than they already were from Harry’s disappearance, and that they must’ve been bribed to deny all procedures that would help Severus just a little bit, but he also could tell that unless he was in a social standing on par or above Lucius, he couldn’t do anything about it.

            The students, especially the Slytherins, were, in one way or another, quite sad to see him go as he packed all his belongings from the office and the staff dorm and left. He maybe a mean old bat and a greasy old git, but no one taught better in this subject than him, and despite the charges against him that caused him to lose his job, no one in Hogwarts blamed him, much less Hagrid, because of what they knew and understood about his true feelings towards Harry. He wasn’t much in a mood to have any sort of farewell gathering of sorts after he heard about Harry’s disappearance, but before he left, he was being sent off by all the staff with goodwill. Hermione, Ron, Draco and Remus did pay a visit to him at the Snape manor to offer their support though, but it was not exactly enough to ease his burdened heart over the fact that his little beloved could be or may have already been in the clutches of the mass murderer Riddle. The only person probably glad to see him go was Horace Slughorn who gladly accepted his reassignment as Potions Master and Head of Slytherin by the Ministry back into Hogwarts.

            Due to the disappointing results of the Ministry’s careless response towards Harry’s disappearance and their search for him, or lack thereof, some of the more prominent Aurors, namely Kingsley, Moody and Tonks, conspired together to go out on their own private search and rescue team. After much discussion with Albus, they soon create ‘The Order of the Phoenix’ based on Albus’ pet phoenix Fawkes to give them a boost of confidence and power. They have decided to use Severus’ manor as a base of operation and will conduct their own investigation on the possible whereabouts of Riddle while keeping up a loyal façade in front of the Ministry. Those recruited were:

 **Sirius Black** (for his connections with the aristocrats for information)

 **Fleur Delacour** (for her family being neighbours with Harry’s French relatives, who were already relocated by the Ministry, and being urged by the Ministry to keep a lookout on Riddle’s appearance)

 **Aberforth** **Dumbledore** , Albus’ estranged brother (for working as bartender in Hog’s Head in Hogsmeade, which was a good source of information)

 **Arabella** **Figg** , a Squib living in the Muggle world (for her connections with some of Harry’s Muggle relatives besides the Dursleys and her lookout for Riddle’s appearance)

 **Mundungus** **Fletcher** (for his involvement in petty crimes and being an informant for Albus on certain occasions)

 **Remus** **Lupin** (for his tracking skills as a half-wolf)

 **Rubeus** **Hagrid** (for his brute strength once it is needed to battle against Riddle, and his obvious endearing affection over Harry)

 **Arthur and Molly Weasley** (for their connections with Hermione’s parents who work part-time as their informant from the Muggle side)

 **Bill Weasley** (for his skills in curse-breaking and information-gathering from his line of work in the bank)

 **Charlie Weasley** (for his social skills with foreigners in obtaining information)

            Hermione, inspired by the Order, decided along with Ron to create their own band of ‘vigilantes’, so to speak, mainly due to the injustice of Severus’ expulsion from his post in Hogwarts and of Harry’s unfair transfer of custody. Gathering those who were changed one way or another by Harry, Hermione and Ron created ‘Dumbledore’s Army’ to boycott against Horace’s position in Hogwarts and demand the Ministry to not only do a better job looking for Harry (supporting the Order secretly at the same time) but also to return Albus’ parental rights over Harry. Neville and Colin were the only non-student part of the Dumbledore’s Army and while the Order have their meetings at Snape’s manor, the little juvenile band would also secretly Floo to the manor by the prompting of Neville and Colin via firecall, discussing plans over tea and crumpets in the servants’ lounge, before the Old Married Couple updated Draco on it whenever they went to visit him. Those who volunteered and were recruited from Hogwarts were:

 **Hannah Abbott** (whom Harry helped calm her nerves over her exams by sneaking out some Calming Draught from Poppy’s cabinet the day before)

 **Katie Bell** (whom Harry prevented from touching her book that was cursed by the Slytherins with an Inferno curse)

 **Susan Bones** (who felt guilty and sorry for Harry’s plight thanks to her aunt’s verdict along with the Wizengamot on Severus)

 **Terry Boot** (who joined mostly because he was infatuated by Hermione, but was generally sympathetic for Harry)

 **Lavender Brown** (who joined mostly because of her infatuation with Ron, but was a sucker for true love and Severus’ love for Harry moved her)

the couples **Cho Chang and Cedric Diggory** (whom Harry helped to get back together from their lovers’ spat)

the couples **Michael Corner and Ginny Weasley** (whom Harry helped to match-make together)

 **Marietta Edgecombe** (who had always wanted to rebel against her mother who worked in the Ministry and was a blind loyal follower to Cornelius through and through)

 **Justin Finch-Fletchley** (whom Harry rescued from being bitten by a snake that was put in by the Slytherins as a prank for being a Muggle-born)

the couple **Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas** (whom Harry helped to match-make together as well)

 **Anthony Goldstein** (whom Harry helped him discover his happy thoughts, making him succeed in creating a Patronus and pass DADA)

 **Angelina Johnson** (whom Harry helped her realize her uptight ways in Quidditch)

 **Lee Jordan** (who joined mostly to impress Angelina, but genuinely sympathetic towards Harry’s plight)

 **Luna Lovegood** (whom Harry befriended and helped from being bullied)

 **Ernie Macmillan** (whom Harry helped and encouraged in his studies for the exams and involved him in study groups with Hermione and Ron)

the twins **Padma** **and Parvati Patil** (who joined because of their sisterly affections for Harry—and rivaled each other for the boy’s attention when he was around—when he comforted them for not getting Valentine’s Day gifts by making chocolate tidbits for them)

 **Zacharias Smith** (whom Harry surprisingly was able to put up with his haughty, irritable attitude and ultimately changed him for the better)

 **Alicia Spinnet** (whom Harry often nurses of her wounds whenever she takes penalties during Quidditch)

the twins **Fred and George Weasley** (for their ability to snag information from anywhere, especially while working in their pranks and joke shop).

            “Severus?”

            Severus broke out of his muse as he heard the grandfatherly voice of Albus calling him. One look at the old man’s face and Severus knew it was time for one of the Order’s meetings. Sighing, he pocketed the parchment and followed behind Albus to Floo to the Snape manor, where everyone was waiting at the lounge for the both of them.

            “What news of the search, everyone?” Albus asked as he settled down on his seat, with Severus following suite.

            “A few more murders here and there as we speak, I’m afraid,” Kingsley sighed. “It seems that ever since we’ve relocated and hidden the remaining Potter bloodline, he had decided to go back to his roots of killing off non-pureblood wizards and witches and their families.”

            “He seemed to have started a trend on his victims now,” Tonks said in disgust. “Every time he killed someone, he would leave behind one of their body parts behind intact and would carve an alphabet on in for us to see. When we arranged the alphabet chronologically to its appearance, it spelt V-O-L-D-E-M-O-R-T.”

            “Voldemort?” Arthur wrinkled his nose. “So now he’s giving himself a new name ‘Voldemort’? That’s rather egotistical of him.”

            “No surprise there, love,” Molly grimaced. “He _is_ known for showing off his works.”

            “He had just recently killed a Muggle-born and his entire family in a Muggle playground just yesterday evening,” Arabella noted, “and eliminated an entire playground of witnesses. I got there almost too late. The whole place was filled with bodies barely recognizable. I had to watch as the Ministry came over to clean up the mess and alter all those who had survived and seen the attack.”

            “You wouldn’t be able to do anything anyway if you got there any earlier,” Moody chided. “No offense, but you being Squib would only send you to your grave if you went there by yourself.”

            “None taken, but I still feel that if I had found out earlier, at least I could warn the family instead of letting him kill all those innocent little children.”

            “I’ve been hearing words around Knockturn Alley that this Riddle guy, or Voldemort as you say his new name is, is seemingly recruiting people,” Mundungus, or known as Dung to some, revealed to the group. “Rumour has it the recruiter could possibly be Voldemort’s underling Wormtail, and there have been tales of seeing a certain blonde aristocrat coming in and out of that shady alley as well.”

            “I’ve heard whisperings of it as well in the midst of all this Voldemort talk between customers,” Abeforth noted.

            “It’s Lucius! It has to be!” Severus growled. “I’d bet my fortune he is the one behind all this and is making allegiance with that murdering bastard.”

            “We believe so too,” Kingsley nodded in agreement. “But unfortunately Lucius has bought off the entire Ministry to waver off any suspicion against him. Trying to find incriminating evidence against him is like trying to ask a cat to cast the Killing Curse on itself.”

            “So we are just going to let him go free and do whatever he wants while Harry is possibly in his captivity??”

            “Easy there, mate,” Charlie said, trying to pacify Severus and calm down. “We know you’re upset and worried about Harry, but it’s not the moment for you to lose your head here.”

            “Hmph,” Sirius snorted. “For all we know, that Potter boy might be dead already.”

            Everyone turned to glare at Sirius. They knew they have dragged Sirius against his will to join in the Order when he claimed to want nothing of the sort, preferring to booze off and enjoy his sex with Paprika, but if it weren’t for Paprika herself urging him to join, he wouldn’t even be here, and Sirius seemed to be enjoying his time making them miserable of their choice to include him in the Order.

            “What?” Sirius raised a brow. “C’mon, don’t tell me you never thought at least once that this is a wild goose chase.”

            “He is not dead, Black.” Severus gritted his teeth. “You take that back right now!”

            “Oh, come on, Snivellus, just let him go already. With that murdering son of a bitch, Potter is as good as dead. There’s no point in trying to get him back once he’s with…”

            “You’re wrong! His name is still on the lineage family tree! He’s still alive, I know it!”

            “That bloody old thing? Don’t kid yourself, Snivellus. Sooner or later, someone will find Potter’s body dumped in a ditch somewhere and the Ministry is gonna cross out his name, synchronizing with every Auror’s parchment, including this one. There is no point in this stupid Order. Let’s just focus on getting the bad guy rather than chasing after some sniveling boy!”

            “Sirius, now is not the time for pessimistic arguments like these…” Tonks tried to reason with her cousin, but was cut off by Severus brandishing his wand dangerously at Sirius.

            “You will take back what you said, right NOW!”

            “No can do, Snivellus,” Sirius chuckled, not the least bit perturbed at Severus’ threat. “You know it yourself too. You know, deep down inside, there is no hope of saving Potter. You know that sooner or later, you will hear the news of his death and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

            “Shut up! SHUT UP!! That doesn’t prove anything! I know my Harry! He will live! He will survive this until I come to rescue him.”

            “Oh, just bloody stop it, Snivellus. Accept the fact. He’s as good as gone. Let him go.”

            Everyone held their breath as they watched the intense scene unfold between Sirius and Severus, long time archenemies that go way back since Hogwarts when Sirius played the first prank on him. Neither of them dared to whip out their wand in case they made the situation worse, but neither of them dared to come up to pacify them for fear of Severus aiming his wand at them instead.

            Surprisingly, Severus lowered his wand and aimed a sharp punch at Sirius’ nose before stomping out of the room, leaving the latter to bleed and curse at him. Everyone heaved almost a sigh of relief as nothing serious happened, but they could not ignore the fact that despite them being concerned for both Harry’s wellbeing and Voldemort’s rise in terror, Severus was affected the most from it.

            “Nice going, Sirius,” Bill scolded as he picked Sirius up from the floor when he fell off his chair from the punch. “Why not tell him to prepare a body bag while you’re at it.”

            “Not my fault he can’t face the truth,” Sirius grumbled as he nursed his nose, holding it to stop the bleeding.

            “You still owe Severus an apology,” Tonks chided in. “He didn’t deserve that, no matter how much you hate him.”

            “Oh, grow up, will you, _Nymphadora_?”

\--:--

            Severus walked silently towards his personal stash of scotch and poured himself a drink. Usually he would never drink those because it reminded him of his abusive alcoholic father who drowned himself in it, and had it there as a reminder that he should not ever end up like his old man, but right now, he couldn’t care less. He needed something to ease his pain and he needed it now.

            “Gonna share that with me, Snivellus?”

            Almost immediately, Severus turned to glare at him. Sirius looked back at him in a bored look, totally unperturbed by Severus’ threatening dark orbs that could spell a thousand deaths to those caught unaware.

            “It’s not nice to hog, you know,” Sirius said casually as he came forward to him, his hand reaching over for a glass and waved it at Severus’ face, eager to have some of his scotch. Severus had wanted to snap at him, but something in the back of his mind thought that it wasn’t worth it anyway.

            “It’s not fair to prey on other people’s weaknesses either, Black,” Severus muttered as he poured some for Sirius. Sirius saw it wasn’t enough and pushed Severus’ hand down to pour some more.

            “Come on, share, Snivellus, share. There ya go. Much better.”

            Severus rolled his eyes as he pulled away and poured himself a glass. Sirius chugged down half of its content and let out a satisfied burp.

            “This is good stuff, Snivellus. I didn’t know you’re holding out on me with this. I might just enjoy coming here for those damn meetings.”

            “What are you doing here, Black?” Severus grumbled as he took a sip of his scotch. “Come to gloat at me for my pathetic situation, like you always do back in school?”

            “Those buggers made me come here to apologize to you. It’s already boring enough to sit through that stupid meeting and make futile plans to defeat that murdering bastard, now they had to force me to tap into my conscience and come make amends with you.”

            “Then don’t. I do not accept half-hearted apologies and insincere gestures.”

            “Seriously, Snivellus, what is your obsession with that kid anyway?” Sirius wrinkled his nose in annoyance. “There are more fishes in the sea than clinging onto that little brat who was already used to begin with.”

            “He’s the only person I will ever love, Black,” Severus shot a cold look at him. “He always had a way of making our situation brighter. I always gave him a hard time, but he always pulled through. He had done so much for me. He tolerated my attitude, listened to all my orders, never complained much and he sacrificed so much for my sake, even willing to carry my child even though he knew he would face expulsion from school. It’s not something you would understand if you never have someone to love.”

            “Come on, Snivellus,” Sirius snorted. “Wake up and smell the brandy. You know no matter how much you want him, unless he comes of age, people are still gonna think you’re a fucking pedo. Besides, even if you do get him and do live happily ever after, you’re still gonna end up looking more like his father than his lover. We wizards may have a longer life span than Muggles, but still, let’s face it, you’re gonna die first before he does, and what would leave him? Your kids? Your money? Please!”

            “This…This is not fair…” Severus muttered to himself, not really listening to Sirius’ rants. “He…He had brought so much joy into my life. There’s never a dull moment when he’s around…I…I can’t believe the Ministry would do this to him, to us…And that Voldemort…Why…? Why did he have to…?”

            “Hey, haven’t you listened to a word I said? You’d be lucky to find him in one piece! Of all the people you had to be infatuated with, you had to choose this kid whom you don’t even know is still alive!”

            “Fuck you, Black! FUCK YOU!” Severus shouted, losing his control as he grabbed Sirius’ collar. “What is it with you?! Why do you always taunt me? Why do you always insist on making my life miserable?! You and your stupid Marauders always find ways to torture me and make me hurt! Do you hurt me that much?! What have I done to deserve your malice?! What have I done to make you treat me like such an ASSHOLE?!”

            “I don’t hate you.”

            “Wh…What?”

            “I don’t hate you. True, I might be what you say I am, but I never said I hated you.”

            “Then why? Why do you insist on…”

            “Because I knew right from the moment I saw you that you will have a life so much better than I am.”

            “What…What are you talking about?”

            Sirius grinned as he downed the last drop of his scotch and made a refill. He cat-walked slowly towards Severus and leaned close to him with a smug smirk on his lips.

            “Remember the first time we crossed paths with each other? It was when we met in Hogwarts Express, remember? Remember when I accused you of banging into me before James and my buddies came over to tackle you down?”

            “Of course I do,” Severus cringed at the memory. “You said I gave you a concussion and I told you that I never done such things, only for you, James and Pettigrew pile up on me like I was a bloody sandwich on rye. What’s that got to do with…”

            “Not many people know this, but I am a Seer just like that loony Trelawney. But unlike her who sees it only whenever the situation forces her to, mine is more refine, more clear, and seen every bloody waking moment of my life. Her pessimism made her see death and destruction all the time, and most of it is never accurate, but when she is in that crazy-ass trance, her predictions are 100% spot on. For me, it’s never sure. Whenever I have a vision, there is always a possibility that something happens in real life that changes the outcome, then I will get another ending to my vision, although weirdly I could never see my own future. That’s the downside of my ability, thus I never pursued her career and try to drown the visions with alcohol. Why do you think I’m such a boozer?”

            “Then…what really happened in Hogwarts Express…”

            “It happens when once in a blue moon, I get a definite 100% spot on vision. When I saw you, it was like a full-blown collision against the wall or something when I saw you definitely going to have a life that is destined to be better than mine, but with many tribulations on the way. That’s why I bullied you. I was jealous of that definite future you will have and I wanted to make you miserable for it.”

            Severus stared at him, slightly speechless as he saw this new side of Sirius. He felt a little awkward knowing that their rivalry was based on envy, almost like how Harry got into this mess because of his friend’s jealousy. Slowly, he let him go and turned his back on him, sipping whatever was left of his scotch. Sirius sipped his and chuckled.

            “Do you want me to let you in a secret?”

            Severus ignored him.

            “The day I went to that Potter boy’s first birthday, I had another definite vision again. The minute I saw him, I knew there and then that he will be the one to change your life, that he will marry you and be the best ‘wife’ you’ll ever have. Little Potter-Snape. Ridiculous, isn’t it? Now that he’s in the hands of that son of a bitch, I’m starting to doubt whether it was really a definite vision or just the booze talking.”

            Severus trembled, trying to hold back the tears as hard as he could. He had never cried, not even after he had escaped from the tyranny of his father. He swore to himself never to cry for anybody except his mother—even that, he only cried just enough at her deathbed—and the years with his father when he was alive had trained him to be a cold, expressionless man. No one in Hogwarts could move him, except Albus who was almost a godfather to him. He was stationary, standing tall and proud among his colleagues. Unmovable. Unbreakable.

            But now everything has changed. This night, after almost weeks of worrying over Harry and horrified over the thought that his name would be crossed out, he cried. He could feel his salty tears trickling down his sallow cheek. He tried unsuccessfully to lower his head and let his hair cover his teary face but Sirius saw through it. Tentatively, Sirius came up to him.

            “Oi, oi, Snivellus,” Sirius said as he came up to him. “Don’t go all sobbing over me now. I thought you’re smarter than that to fall for my drunken talk.”

            Severus covered his sodden eyes with his hands, quietly sobbing to himself. Sirius was the last person he would want to see him break down like this, but right now, whether it was because he was totally broken through and through or it was because of the booze, he couldn’t care less. He needed to let it all out before it consumed him and turned him into a mirror image of his father.

            “Get out, Black. Leave,” Severus hissed in his choked voice as he leaned against the table, one hand hugging himself while the other kept on his eyes as tears fell even more.

            “Hey, if it makes you feel any better…” Sirius said awkwardly, scratching his chin. “I don’t see his death. Not yet, anyways.”

            “Out, NOW!!” Severus snarled, then tried to control his trembling breath as he forced himself to speak calmly. “Please…”

            Sirius left with his drink, leaving Severus to slump to the floor and let out muffled wail after wail as he buried his face on his knees, sobbing for all its worth.


	64. Chapter 64

            Harry looked over at the door as he heard a spell whispered and the door unlocked. He cowered away near the head of the bed as he saw Voldemort coming in, smiling wickedly at his response to his presence. After almost 2 weeks of being held in captivity in this room with only Wormtail bringing him his meals everyday without a word from Voldemort, the man finally decided to show up. Although Harry felt more or less lucky that his room had an adjoining toilet and bathroom beside him, or he wondered how he was ever gonna relieve himself or how he was going to cope with his morning sickness without a lavatory to go to.

            “Good morning, Liat. Had a good sleep last night?” Voldemort said as he regarded him from his distance.

            “As can be expected,” Harry replied, keeping a wary eye at him.

            “Is that all you can say?” Voldemort raised a brow. “I was expecting a ‘Good morning’ as well.”

            “No, but I don’t want another punishment any time soon.”

            “Well, if you be a good boy,” Voldemort said as he came up to him and took his chin, “I won’t lay a hard hand on you. In fact, you might get a reward.”

            “Re…Reward?” Harry gulped, trying not to flinch at the touch. What was he, a dog?

            “You’ll see soon enough,” Voldemort smirked as he let go of his chin. “Now get yourself off those ugly school clothes and come to my room. You are no longer a free person you think you are and you are not walking around the house in that outfit, so I’ve got something that’ll fit.

            _Right, like that is why he wants me out of them,_ Harry thought sarcastically, but to avoid another punishment he did as he told. He followed behind Voldemort to his quarters fully nude, earning a perverted giggle by Wormtail and a light spank from Lucius (making him whimper in shock) as he passed them by. As soon as he was in Voldemort’s room, which was one of the guestrooms of the Malfoy mansion, but refurnished to look almost like a master bedroom, Voldemort turned and marveled at Harry’s naked form for a while.

            “Very, very nice. You’ve got the body any man would kill to possess and ravish, especially here,” Voldemort grinned and traced his finger along Harry’s cock.

            “I don’t think so,” Harry flinched and pushed him away. His body belonged to Severus and he was not about to let someone other than him touch it.

            “First rule in my household,” Voldemort said in a warning tone, taking Harry’s hand that pushed him, “No resisting,” he kissed the back of the hand before sucking one of his fingers, “When I touch you, you accept it as it is. Understand?”

            “And if I don’t?” Harry stood his ground, only earn a good hard slap on his butt, making him jump.

            “Good enough a reminder for you?”

            “Yes,” Harry looked down. “I understand.”

            “Good,” Voldemort gave a lick on Harry’s nose before going to the wardrobe, in which Harry rubbed it as soon as his back was turned. “I’ve got something you’d probably look very nice in it. I got this from a Muggle store when I went out to search for one of your Muggle relatives…Aha! Here we go! Here. This is just right for you.”

            Harry looked in horror at the outfit he was given. It was a woman’s nightie that had the colour of sunset pink, with black laces for the shoulder straps and frills for the hem. It came together with a choker that had a chain on the center and ankle bands that were also connected to each other with a chain, like those convicts wore on their ankles, minus the heavy feeling of metal and a chain ball.

            “No fucking way,” Harry threw the nightie on the floor and backed away. “I’m not a girl. I’m not wearing that.”

            “I beg to differ, Liat. You are now sporting a vagina instead of a penis, and you are with child. What else are you but a girl? Besides, this is not a request, Liat.”

            “My name is Harry, not Liat, and I am not wearing this, period!”

            “Well, someone is being naughty again, aren’t we?”

            So saying, Voldemort flicked his wand and whispered a spell, pinning Harry onto the bed face down on his stomach. Harry tried to fight, but he was not succeeding because of the spell. He felt Voldemort quietly tracing his fingers along his ass and flinched, desperately trying to struggle. He hated feeling vulnerable, especially in front of the murderer of his parents. No one was to see his vulnerable side except those close to him, and this man was the last person on earth he’d want him see him grovel.

            “JUST DO IT! Just get it over with!”

            “Oh, I will, but I am not about to be told what to do. Remember who is the slave here, Liat.”

            Grabbing a fistful of Harry’s hair, he turned the boy’s head until it was sideways so he could hear him talk better.

            “Now, I’ll ask you again. You will wear that outfit, won’t you?”

            “No!”

            “You promised to do whatever I say and you’ve broken your promise. For this, you will be punished.”

            “I hate you!” Harry screamed. “You’re all the same! You only care about your own pleasure!”

            “I wouldn’t say that to the person who is going to punish you. Besides,” Voldemort smirked as he caressed Harry’s ass, “I’m doing this for your own good.”

            “For your own perverted pleasure, you mean…”

            Harry’s remark was cut short when Voldemort let one fly right on the flesh. Harry bit his lip. He was not going to give him the satisfaction of hearing him beg for mercy, even though tears were starting to come out of his eyes. While Voldemort carried on spanking hard, he lectured him, timing his spanks right.

            “It’s exactly because you let your mouth run after you that you are in this predicament right now. Look at what your defiance have caused you. Are you a sucker for punishment? Or do you actually _enjoy_ being punished like this, like the slave you are?”

            “Shut up, you sick, sadistic bastard!!”

            “You will soon learn that silence is golden, Liat.”

            Voldemort increased his speed, spanking him this time, not giving the pain any chance to heal. Harry returned to biting his lip, but once he reached the 20th spank, the biting on his lip only got worse. He could taste blood from biting his lip too hard, and only with that did he start begging for it to be stopped.

            “Please…Stop…No…My baby…”

            “Will you do as I say now?” Voldemort asked as he stopped spanking for a moment.

            Harry thought about it. He would be in the same position if he said yes, but then if he said no it would start again.

            “Yes.”

            “Yes, what?” Voldemort asked, slapping him hard once, reminding him of what he was ordered to call him.

            “M…Milord,” Harry mumbled out.

            “That’s right, and just so you remember…”

            Voldemort slapped a few more times before letting him go, spell and all. Harry quickly crawled away from him. His ass was red and sore and he couldn’t really sit on it, so he more of less was on his knees. Voldemort picked up the nightie he threw on the floor and tossed it to him.

            “Now put this on, and no more wisecracks from you.”

            Harry does so, wondering how long can he hold out until help came his way, or wondering if there was a chance that he could plan his own escape. Once he donned the ankle chains, Voldemort circled him, marveling at how Harry looked in the outfit.

            “Now that is so much better. See? Was that so hard just to put on some clothes?”

            The words “Shove it” was on the tip of his tongue but he kept them to himself and nodded.

            “Come along now. I’ve got something for you.”

            So saying, Voldemort took the chain that was on the choker and led him downstairs to the living room. Once they were there, he made the boy sit down as he disappeared out of sight for a while, only to return with something in his hand. Once he opened his palm to show him, Harry saw that it was a dog tag shaped of a heart, but with a sort dent design shaped like Harry’s lightning bolt scar in the middle of the heart, like as if the heart was broken.

            “I got this from a very old friend of mine just recently. Antonin Dolohov is his name. Nice man he is, I might take you to meet him sometime. Like what you see, my boy?”

            “Hell, no. I am not wearing it,” Harry instinctively denied him.

            “What did you promise?” Voldemort asked in a warning tone as he reached out and pinches Harry’s ass that was still throbbing.

            “Ow…” Harry frowned but didn’t make any more protests.

            Voldemort used his wand to carve something on the tag before pulling the chain so that Harry would come closer. Ordering him to stay still, he clasped the dog tag on the ring where the chain began on the choker. The tag read ‘ _Liat_ _: Private Property_ ’ and as soon as he put it on, the tag shone and showed a sort of shimmering trail that led outwards to the window, leaving Harry with a questioning look in his eyes.

            “There, all done,” Voldemort said proudly. “Now everybody will know you’re mine, and it seems that the tag is working just perfectly.”

            “Wh…What are you talking about?”

            “This tag is specially made for the purpose of tracking your blood relatives that have been evading me. Somehow, the Aurors have got to them and hid them away, and totally kept their relocated whereabouts in secrecy; so secret that even dear Malfoy couldn’t dig it out of them. So ol’ pal Dolohov have made this tag so that it will track them down based on your blood relations with them. And judging by the trail, it seemed to have found the one closest to us.”

            “I hate it.”

            “And you will wear it whether you hate it or not. Come along now. We’ve got work to do.”

            “I refuse to be your instrument for murder! I will break this off, I swear it!”

            “You can’t. Once a carver carves the name of a slave on a tag, they are bound to it for life. Until I decide to take it off from you and free you, any attempts to take it off will let you die a slow and painful death, almost like the effects of an Unbreakable Vow. You wouldn’t want that, would you, especially when you have a baby to think about?”

            “F…Fuck you!” Harry frowned.

            “Yes, but I will fuck you first, soon. Now turn around. There’s something I almost forgot to do.”

            Without warning, he whipped out a comb that looked like it was made out of white gold and started combing Harry’s hair. Every stroke sent a cold rush onto Harry’s head and somehow elongated his hair inch by inch. Before he knew it, he found himself having flowing ebony hair almost as long as Voldemort’s.

            “Now you look perfect. Come. Let’s make yourself useful, shall we?”

            Harry prayed to gods of all religion that he would get out of this, one way or another.

\--:--

            Wolfen was in the living room smoking his pipe after making sure that his family was sound asleep. He double-checked to see if the guards and Dementors were outside and triple-checked to see if his doors and windows were firmly locked and heavily charmed. You can’t be too careful when someone was out there to get you.

            Before he could settle down on the sofa to have a piece of mind, he was almost startled by a silent knock on the door. He peeked out of the window but couldn’t see the person from his angle. He opened the peep slot of the door yet still he couldn’t see anyone, but the knock persisted.

            “Who is it?”

            “Please…open the door…” a small boy’s voice was heard.

            “Who are you? How did you get past the guards and the Dementors?”

            “P…Please…? It’s me, Harry.”

            “Harry?!” Wolfen exclaimed. “As in Harry, the one this Riddle fellow is looking for? _The_ Harry?!”

            “Yes. Please let me in.”

            “What are you doing here? You shouldn’t be here!” Wolfen undid the charms and unlocked and opened the door almost immediately. “Are you trying to get me and my family ki…Hey, you’re not Harry.”

            It was when his mind cleared a little that the scenery before him unfolded and sank in. Piles upon piles of bodies of the Aurors were on the ground, totally torn into pieces and staining the grass and dirt red. The Dementors were all gone, their chill no longer permeated the atmosphere. Instead of seeing a little boy as he expected, he saw a girl with long, flowing hair reaching her waist dressed in a nightie with chains on her ankle bands and a choker that had a dog tag on named ‘Liat’, and her forehead was a rather striking lightning bolt scar.

            “What the…” Wolfen looked at all the mutilated bodies before him. “What the hell is going on…? Who…Who are you?!”

            “Run,” the small girl whispered.

            “What?”

            “Please. Ru—”

            “Hello there, Mr. Blaine-Potter. I believe you have an appointment with the Grim Reaper.”

            A snake-like wicked grin of a man that appeared behind the girl and the girl’s teary jade-green eyes was the last thing he saw.

\--:--

            “Liat, stop playing games. Open this door right now!”

            Harry cowered under the bed, hoping that the huge dressing table he pushed painstakingly was enough to barricade the door. After that incident he was forced to put through, there was no way he was going to allow Voldemort to do his bidding again.

            “Fuck off!!” Harry screamed from where he was hiding. “I don’t want you anywhere near me, you bastard!!”

            “Alright, you asked for it.”

            Harry heard a loud blast as Voldemort used the Blasting Charm to open the door, destroying the dressing table at the same time as wood and glass were heard scattering noisily onto the wooden floor. He heard angry footsteps stomping around the room, as if he was being searched, before he suddenly felt a strong yank of his ankles as he was dragged out from under the bed and thrown onto it.

            “Look what you made me do!” Voldemort snarled as he grabbed a fistful of Harry’s hair and forced him to look at what used to be the door and the dressing table. “It’s all your fault you made me lose my temper and do this!”

            “Nothing a repairing spell won’t cure,” Harry snorted defiantly.

            “What’s with this attitude of yours? You're being naughty again.”

            “You think just because you have me in captivity and subject me to ridicule, I would be worshiping the ground you walk on? Be a good little slave and beg for you?! Dream on, Voldemort!!”

            “Don’t blame me for your predicament. Blame your parents. If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t even have bothered about you in the first place.”

            “You were the one who killed them!” Harry shouted, trying to hold back his tears. “You were the one who got yourself into this mess! You deserve to get everything you were thrown at! Serves you right for ending up in prison! Hell, they should’ve just given you the death penalty and rid you of your stupidity!!”

            “I don’t need you to tell what I do or do not deserve,” Voldemort hissed venomously and grabbed his throat. “They had it coming. You were to do as you were told. Besides, you didn’t have to do all the work. All you have to do was wear that tag and we will do all the clean up for you. So technically your job is so much easier than we are. Why do you have to make it so difficult for yourself?”

            “Because you kidnap me for the sole purpose of making me into your instrument for murder! I have no say in it! I don’t have any fucking say in it! It’s either do it or die!”

            “Watch your mouth, boy, or I will give you exactly what you want. Is that what you want? To let your beloved find you and your child in pieces? Coz I can do it with a snap of my finger if I haven’t had the slightest inch of compassion for you! Who are you to tell me what is my purpose of kidnapping you? You are to serve me, and in what way is as I please! You’re being naughty again, and I don’t tolerate naughty!”

            So saying, he grabbed Harry by the chain on his choker and forced him down with his chest up on his lap in that spanking position again. In a way, Harry was glad that he wasn’t in a regular position where his chest down to the stomach was supposed to be on the lap because it would probably crush his child, but that does not mean this position was any better when it meant the burning sensation on his butt again.

            “Why can’t you just kill me and be done with it?” Harry said angrily as he struggled, tears starting to pool in his eyes. “You won’t have to put up with me any longer and fulfill your vengeance against my parents! Why did you have to do this to me?!”

            “Because I told you before, where is the fun in that?” Voldemort smirked as he accio-ed a hairbrush from the broken drawer of the dressing table. “Now shut up and accept your punishment, and this time I won’t go easy on you.”

            “I FUCKING HATE YOU!!!”

            “Well, it’s not about how you feel about me, isn’t it, Liat? You are serving on my terms now. Brace yourself, this is gonna be a bitch.”

            With that, Voldemort gripped the hairbrush tight and delivered his first blow. Harry cursed and bit down on the older man’s thigh hard in an attempt to make him let him go, making the latter wince a little and pry Harry’s mouth off his thigh.

            “That’ll double your punishment, Liat.”

            He propped the boy’s chin and forced a scrunched up ball of the bed sheet into his mouth, holding his wrists behind his back with one hand and forcing his body weight on them before continuing his spanking. The more Harry struggled, the harder he spanked until the boy was forced to quiet down and endure his punishment. It was like with his previous Masters again as Voldemort spanked him until he lost count. All he could do was grit his teeth on his make-shift gag and whimper as he tried to survive this and pray that it did not damage the baby. It was only when Voldemort noticed his ass was getting black and blue that he slowed down, but did not stop immediately.

            “Do you yield now? Have you learnt your lesson?”

            “Fuck…you…” Harry said in a muffled voice through the gag, his face drenched with his salty tears. That earned him a few more hard spanks.

            “Are you sorry now for being naughty?”

            Harry was too far gone with tears to answer, but his pride made him respond by shaking his head vehemently, still being stubborn.

            “Then you will have to be punished some more.”

            Harry let out another series of muffled screams and wails as Voldemort returned into spanking him with renewed force. It was only until Wormtail came over to warn Voldemort that Lucius was expecting a visitor in the next few minutes that he stopped abruptly. Glaring grudgingly at Wormtail for the interruption, he threw Harry off his lap and used the Repairing spell to fix the dressing table and the door.

            “He is to be denied decent food and only have bread and water for the next few days,” Voldemort hissed as he looked at Harry who was in a fetal position and in a teary sobbing mess. “And nurse his bottom. I want him walking by the time I’m ready for him.”

            “Yes, Master,” Wormtail nodded as he smirked at Harry before casting the Locking and Silencing Charm on the door.


	65. Chapter 65

            Harry slowly woke as he heard the sound of chirping outside the window and felt the sun coming in. He winced a little as he felt the slight ache on his ass and remembered that he had yet to heal, even though it had been a few days since it happened. Suddenly the thought of it sent a surge of rage into his system and he grabbed the nearest breakable thing he could find and threw it against the wall, venting out his anger.

            “I wouldn’t do that if I were you, boy.”

            Harry almost jumped as he saw Wormtail grinning beside the bed, putting the tray of bread and water on his bedside table, while behind him levitated the medication and ice for his still throbbing butt. He scowled at him, annoyed. This ratty man seemed to be able to pop up around the area when he least expected it, and all that without even making a single sound.

            “What are you, a jinn or something?” Harry scolded, rubbing the sleep off his eyes.

            “No, I just learn to be quiet because sometimes Master Riddle would be sleeping when I come in,” Wormtail grinned, his ratty buck teeth showing. “And being a Rat Animagus gives you many advantages on being a silent stalker. Guess my training paid off.”

            “Well I don’t like it. Someone could come in here and kill me and I would never know.”

            “Don’t worry. No one is going to kill you. Not yet, anyway.”

            “Is that bastard back yet?” Harry grumbled as he watched Wormtail fixing the thing he threw with the Repairing spell.

            “He’ll be home in an hour or so,” Wormtail said as he gestured Harry to lay on his stomach and show his buttocks. As the boy grudgingly did so, Wormtail scooped a generous amount of salve and lathered on the bruises, which were more or less in the healing process. “You know, you must try to get along with Master Riddle. He’s only doing this for your own good.”

            “Like I care. Nothing he does is good for anybody.”

            “You and your mouth will really be the death of you, you know that? Good luck trying to appease him the next time you cross the line. He won’t be so forgiving, oh no, he won’t,” Wormtail said as he finished lathering the salve until they disappeared. He then took the towel and put ice on it before wrapping it up into a bundle and slowly pressed it against the bruised butt-cheeks, earning a yelp from Harry.

            “Hey, that hurts, you know.”

            “I know that, but you’re gonna have to bear with it if you want to be able to sit down.”

            Harry put his head back on the pillow, allowing Wormtail to continue rubbing the cold, wet towel of ice on his bruises. A long silence ensued between them before Wormtail decided to break the ice.

            “So is it true you’re knocked up?”

            “What’s it to you?” Harry looked at him warily.

            “Oh, nothing. Just curious,” Wormtail shrugged. “I mean you must love Snivellus so much to keep his child.”

            “Snivellus?” Harry turned to face him. “O…Only Sirius called him that. How did you…?”

            “Oh, you didn’t know? We go way back even before you were born. It was such fun to be in a nice group along with your parents and Sirius, and it was fun to play along pulling pranks at people, Snivellus especially. Then Sirius had to break up the group because he couldn’t make your mother love him.”

            “You…You knew my parents?”

            “ _Everybody_ knows your parents, dear boy, not only I. Though I much more than others. We were never the same after we disbanded, no, we weren’t.”

            “How…How were they like…?”

            “Oh, they were wonderful people. Always there for a helping hand, but not averse to having a little naughty fun. A role model to both the school and the society. A regular Mr. and Mrs. Smith, so would the Muggles put it. Your father was the one who gave me the nickname, you know, because despite being a Rat Animagus, I could never get my tail right, and it always shaped like a worm. It was from that nickname that spawned our little group The Marauders: Me as Wormtail, James as Prongs, Lily as Moony and Sirius as Padfoot. Ah, such good times…even the Muggle-borns call us like some kind of justice league or something, whatever that Muggle term means…If Sirius wasn’t so infatuated with your mother, we would’ve still been together…”

            “Why didn’t you try to regroup? Why join Voldemort instead if you loved that life better?”

            Wormtail stopped reminiscing for a split second, realizing what he was doing and shook his head off his reverie, wrapping the towel of ice around Harry’s ass.

            “No, no, must not talk about past,” Wormtail muttered as he closed the jar of salve. “Past no longer exist, yes, I’m no longer their little sidekick, yes…”

            Harry watched in confusion as Wormtail quickly gathered himself and left with the empty ice basin and the medication, muttering incoherently to himself as he walked quickly out of the room, locking it with a charm as he went. It was like looking at Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. One moment he was all chatty and nice, then all of a sudden a withdrawn, babbling fool. What exactly had Voldemort done to him to break him so? He was almost glad that he was getting bread and water for the moment. The morning sickness still lingered and even when he was fed decent meals, he couldn’t swallow down much anyway, and probably Wormtail was inexperienced to know what to prepare for a pregnant person. Lucius would know, since his wife was pregnant with Draco, but then again, he probably couldn’t care less about his welfare anyway. All he ever wanted was to fuck anything that moved.

            Today’s bread was with strawberry jam. At least Wormtail made an effort to let his bread taste better, and by the way he placed the bread, he knew he had done it in secret so that Voldemort would not know. At least that showed Wormtail still had a little bit of humanity left in him.

            As he ate, he stole a look at his long hair. Looking up at the mirror of the repaired dressing table, he knew his friends were right when they said he was beautiful rather than handsome and could pass off as a girl anytime. He remembered the look Wolfen Blaine-Potter gave him when he said he was Harry and yet looked nothing like a person with the name Harry. He remembered the horrified look he had as he saw all the Aurors stationed outside his home totally mutilated by Voldemort without even trying. Voldemort had somehow managed to make a Patronus up in the air and within the clouds to scare the entire proximity of the Dementors with effortless precision and without alerting Wolfen of his presence and he remembered the look of disbelief as the man he had and his family tried to escape from was right there in front of his eyes, totally unscathed. He remembered the screams of horror as the rest of the family woke up from the commotion Voldemort made killing Wolfen, the cries of children, the metallic smell of blood…

            With a vengeance, Harry grabbed a pair of scissors from inside the drawer and literally hacked off his long hair. Locks upon locks of ebony black slid down his shoulders and fell to the floor as he snipped away, getting rid of the look that made him and everyone Voldemort targeted so vulnerable. As he cut away, silent tears rolled down his face. He cried for his fate. He cried for his predicament. He cried for his parents that have died trying to protect him and doing what was right. He cried for the humiliation he was put in. He cried for his inadequacy to save himself from his plight. He cried for the people he had helped Voldemort kill. He cried for the friends he might never see again. He cried for the safety of his baby that hung in the balance.

            Most importantly, he cried because he missed Severus so badly right now.

            “Aww, you missed me?”

            Harry spun round to see Voldemort coming in. When he came closer, he saw that he was wearing whitish Muggle attire, and they were literally stained in blood, and he was walking up to him with an equally bloody pillow case containing something that jingled and jangled as he moved. Wiping his tears hastily, Harry could see the unscathed look on Voldemort suggested that the blood was not his, but his jaw still fell open and there was fear in his eyes at what he had done to earn such a mortifying look. Voldemort smirked smugly at his reaction.

            “If you’re thinking about my wounds, I don’t have it, so don’t worry.”

            “No, why would I?” Harry frowned.

            “What have you done with your hair?”

            “Nothing.”

            “No lies, boy, or else,” Voldemort looked at him solemnly in the eye.

            “I’m not lying. You’re just too full of yourself. And…it’s none of your business,” Harry looked away.

            “It is my business when I see my slave cutting off the hair I personally elongated!” Voldemort snarled as he emptied the pillow case, revealing blood-stained jewelry. “To think I went through all the trouble to get you a present and this is what I come home to see!”

            Harry looked at the jewelry that clattered onto the wooden floor before him. There was a silver ring, an emerald ring, a gold chain, a gold ring and five other pieces of jewelry that definitely belonged to people who were no longer alive. He swallowed nervously, realizing just how crazy Voldemort can really be.

            “I go all out to get you something to make you feel better about your little pain in the butt and I come home to see this! Are we being naughty again?”

            “I don’t need your gifts. I don’t need you to give me anything. I just want you to either let me go or kill me.”

            “Oh, you really are tempting fate, aren’t you, Liat?”

            Without warning, Voldemort took his hand and pulled him close before capturing his lips to a deep kiss. Harry struggled against the kiss and ended up biting his lip until it bled and forced Voldemort to let out a muffled yelp and let go.

            “DON’T TOUCH ME!” Harry screamed as he pushed him away, backing up against the window to distance himself from him.

            “Fuck! Liat, you little bitch!!” Voldemort groaned as he nursed the bleeding lip, his eyes glaring at him dangerously.

            “I don’t want you to touch me! I don’t want to have your hands anywhere on me! You disgust me, you fucking murderous pervert!”

            “You are being naughty again, Liat. What did I say about resisting?”

            “And my name is Harry. Harry James Potter. Not fucking Liat!” Harry scowled, knowing that tone meant he was in for a punishment but stood his ground despite his skin crawling.

            “You will be sorry for this.”

            With that, Voldemort stomped off, slamming the door out loud and locking it. Harry slid down against the window to the floor, curling his arms around his knees as it cradled his tiny baby bump gently. He already was starting to feel sorry, not for Voldemort, but for his baby. He feared that he may be pushing his luck and earn a punishment that might cause him to lose his child, and he scolded himself of his stubbornness and stupidity. He would take this punishment with his head held high, but he hoped that third remains a charm for him and the child, and that fate would be kind to him again this time.

            Surprisingly, the punishment didn’t come. In fact, as Wormtail took him out of the room for his daily walk out in the backyard, Voldemort had ignored him completely. He didn’t want to talk to him, acknowledge him or even look at him. He went about his business as if Harry was not there. Harry knew it was not that simple, and kept his guard on just in case. Wormtail did his usual routine of tying the chain on the backyard lamp post that served as a marker between the mansion and the forest behind and left him there for that routine one and a half hour of fresh air. Harry waited until he left before he went down on the grass and lay on it, breathing in the scent of nature.

            His mind wandered for a while to the days when he was still inarticulate, when he would be out in the gardens with Severus as he played around, plucking the petals out of flowers (earning an angered shout from the Head Gardener) and laughing with Neville as he told him the story of the day. His thoughts lingered at the peaceful smile of happiness Severus gave him as he sat at the backyard table, drinking his tea and watching his antics. As he rolled back onto his back looking at the clouds, they looked like it would rain. He would welcome the rain to wash away his heartache if it weren’t the fact that being out in the rain would get him sick and harm the baby.

            “Severus, I miss you.”

            Suddenly, he felt himself being picked up by the choker from behind and being blindfolded. He tried to fight but the other party was stronger. He knew it wasn’t Wormtail because he knew from the way he was pulled up and by the strength of it that it did not fit Wormtail’s physique, but he couldn’t tell whether it was Voldemort or Lucius without being able to see the perpetrator. He then was released from the lamp post, pulled up on his feet and hauled over the person’s shoulder like a sack of potatoes, carrying him what felt like the direction towards the house. Harry frowned. Was this the punishment Voldemort had promised? But if so, wouldn’t he, the glory hog and egotistical bastard, announce it to be so?

            Whoever it was refused to make a sound as he carried Harry into his bedroom. He was thrown onto the bed and the blindfold charmed so that he couldn’t take it off before he heard the stranger going out of the room and presumably downstairs to get the thing he needed for the punishment.

            “V…Voldemort…?” Harry voiced out. Where was he? Was this even him? Those were some of the thoughts that crossed his mind as he tried in vain to peel the blindfold off.

            Soon the person returned. If he were not blindfolded, he would’ve been able to see that the person came back with a bundle of rope. Using a spell, he tied the rope onto the ceiling and fashioned a noose before picking Harry up and dragging him to the noose. He tightened the noose around both Harry’s wrists and, with another spell, made Harry’s nightie slip off his body, leaving him bare.

            “Voldemort, if that’s you, just say it and stop playing games!”

            The person still did not say a word. Harry could hear him accio a hairbrush—probably the same one he used to spank so hard him a few days ago—and a belt. He felt cold fingers brushing past his little baby bump and along his ass, preparing him for what was about to come. It felt almost as cold as Severus’ when he first touched him in a sensual manner, but this was nowhere near sensual. It was a biting cold that chilled him to the bone, making fear crawl up and down his spine. It was then that Harry confirmed who his perpetrator was.

            “M…Milord…?”

            “You know I’m doing this for your own good.”

            So saying, said Voldemort let one fly with the hairbrush, in which Harry bit his lip hard to not cry out. The boy did not give him the satisfaction to beg for mercy and forgiveness as Voldemort kept on going for about 15 minutes or so, not holding back on the spankings with the brush. By that time, Harry had lost count on how many times he had been spanked as he was sweating and probably going to have permanent teeth mark on his lips. His once healing butt went black and blue again, sporting a bit of purple here and there as the torrent of blows came down on him long and hard without discrimination before it finally came to a stop.

            “Do you yield? Are you sorry for cutting your beautiful hair?”

            “Shut…the fuck…up…” Harry breathed, his tears staining the blindfold.

            “Then I am not going to let you off that easily.”

            Without warning, Voldemort picked up the belt and let one fly onto Harry’s side, dangerously close to his baby bump. That was when Harry knew he was serious, that if he didn’t yield his baby would die. Voldemort carried on whipping him, mostly on the butt but some stray whips onto Harry’s side, all of them dangerously close to his child in him.

            “No, no, stop! No! D…Don’t hurt my baby!!”

            Voldemort would have none of that. He whipped some more, moving towards the front as he let Harry’s legs suffer the wrath next. No matter how Harry begged for Voldemort not to hit his baby, he just moved higher and higher, whipping the calves first before moving threateningly upwards to his thighs, getting closer and closer to his belly. Harry, fearful for the child, finally threw away his pride and begged in wailing agony.

            “Please forgive me, milord!! I’m sorry!! I’m sorry I cut my hair!! I won’t do it again, please~!!”

            “Will you be good this time?” Voldemort asked as he let a warning whip fly near his side.

            “Yes! Yes! I’ll be good!” Harry screamed out desperately. “Milord, please!!”

            “Good, and just you remember…”

            Voldemort turned his attention to Harry’s butt once more, whipping him hard until Harry’s pleas became incoherent—more like a mix between babbling, crying and sobbing—before deciding he had enough punishment for one day. He threw away the belt and removed the charm off the blindfold before taking it off and cupping his cheeks harshly.

            “Have you learnt your lesson?”

            Harry nodded, still sobbing. He just wanted Voldemort to stop hurting his baby. He would do anything if he would just lay his hands off the child.

            “Don’t make me do this again, you hear me, Liat?”

            With that, Voldemort released him from his binds and stomping off the room, ordering Wormtail again to nurse his wounds while leaving Harry to curl up in a fetal position sobbing his heart out.

* * *

_Severus found himself dressed in white in vast space of colourless emptiness. The white on his clothes blended in so well with the surroundings that he felt as if he was wearing the Invisibility Cloak that only revealed his head, his hands and his black shoes. His footsteps echoed as he walked, unable to tell where the floor ended and where the wall or ceiling began. He tried to make out his surroundings and see if there were an end to this abyss but sadly there was none._

_He found himself walking towards a black chair in the middle of nowhere. He looked around to see if the chair belonged to someone but there didn’t seem to be anyone claiming it. He circled the chair once, twice, but there was no foul play. Tentatively, he took a seat on the chair, wondering what was going on._

_As soon as his butt rested on the chair, the setting suddenly changed into the likes of a Victorian living room like a flowing motion, revealing himself sitting on a couch facing the fireplace. This time, he was not alone. Sitting beside him on an armchair was Kaleb Iason, his old flame, dressed in Victorian attire but with a small rug wrapped around one of his hand._

_“K…Kaleb…?” Severus breathed. He had not seen him for a long time, and there he was, appearing out of the blue._

_“Lemme guess, why am I here instead of your pretty little pet?” Kaleb grinned deviously. “Simple, because he doesn’t want to see you.”_

_“Wh…What are you talking about?”_

_“Need I spell it out for you? He – doesn’t – want – to – see – you. Period. Don’t blame him though, after what happened to your son.”_

_“M…My son…?”_

_“Are you really as dumb as you look?” Kaleb rolled his eyes sarcastically. “Here’s a visual aid for you.”_

_Almost abruptly, Kaleb stood up and unveiled the rug on his hand, revealing a bloody fetus that had its umbilical cord still attached and was the size of a kidney bean. It took a few seconds for the sight to sink into Severus’ head before he jumped and cowered away, only to find himself falling on his ass onto a concrete floor. The breeze that hit his face made him realize that he was sitting on a balcony of a Muggle building, with Kaleb sitting on the edge of the balcony with Harry on his lap._

_“H…Harry?! Harry, what are you…You keep your hands off him, Kaleb!” Severus said as he got up. He tried to move forward but some sort of invisible force was holding him back._

_“He won’t hear you, Severus,” Kaleb poked at Harry’s cheek, in which Harry remained unresponsive as he stared blankly at nothing in particular. “He doesn’t want to see you. He doesn’t even want to look at you. You couldn’t even protect him, let alone your son. You’re better off without them.”_

_Without warning, Kaleb leaned back, holding Harry tightly in his arms as he fell down possibly 50 feet below. Only then the invisible force holding Severus down was gone and Severus ran to grab Harry, but it was too late…_

* * *

            “Master! Master Snape, please wake up!”

            Severus’ eyes shot open at Neville’s voice and shaking. He sat up abruptly to see both Neville and Colin looking at him worriedly. It took him a few minutes to get his bearings as he panted breathlessly to recover from his nightmare before he hastily wiped his tears away, although it wouldn’t really matter since they already saw it.

            “What time is it?” Severus asked, trying to sound normal as possible without giving away the choked tone.

            “It’s quarter past five, Master,” Neville replied. “We were doing our usual chores when we heard…”

            “Mr. Hugo just firecalled,” Colin cut short Neville’s words and shot him a glare before turning back to Severus. “He was wondering when you will be done with the Acne Potion because his prom is coming up soon.”

            “At least they have not barred me from doing this part-time job of mine,” Severus muttered, hiding his eyes with his hand, pretending to rub the sleep from his eyes. “Thank Merlin for loyal customers. I’ll get to it right away just as soon as I freshen up. Go change the roses on the bedside table. You know how Harry likes it fresh.”

            “Yes, Master,” Neville said as he picked up the vase of slightly wilted red roses and took it to the kitchen. As Colin cleaned the vase, Neville went out to the gardens for a few minutes before returning with a fresh bouquet of roses—white ones, this time—to put in the vase, sighing as he said, “Master Snape’s nightmares are getting worse every day.”

            “It’s understandable, what with Harry’s disappearance and all,” Colin replied as he got started on making Severus’ breakfast.

            “I wonder if Harry will survive long enough until Master Snape and the Aurors find him and rescue him. So far, Mistress Granger and the Dumbledore’s Army are not exactly making any progress, and the Daily Prophet has begun to show signs of this Voldemort character getting back on track with his murders on Harry’s bloodline.”

            “He’ll be alright,” Colin said half confidently. “He has the heart of a lion and a spirit of a warrior. He’ll pull through. I’m sure of it…I guess.”

            Neville nodded quietly and fingered one of the flowers in the vase. Suddenly the flower turned from its original white colour slowly into blood-red, then to black. Minutes later, it burst into flames and wilted into ashes in his hand. Neville gasped silently and quickly patted the ashes off his hand and the table as it scattered. Luckily, Colin was too engrossed in breakfast-making to notice.

            Neville remembered his grandmother telling him about such occurrences.

            It was a form of prediction. A sign.

            He turned skywards to see the clouds moving rapidly by the sudden strong wind as the sun began to rise. He sighed uneasily as he walked back to Severus’ room with the roses.

            _What will become of our dear friend?_


	66. Chapter 66

            “Now who could that be at this hour?”

            Harry perked his ears a little to hear. He was in his room as usual being tended to by Wormtail and the ratty man decided to have fun with Harry’s re-elongated hair by trying to braid it when they heard that mysterious whoosh from the living room fireplace.

            “Wormtail! Get over here to serve our guest, and bring Liat with you!”

            “Well, you heard the Master,” Wormtail said as he finished doing Harry’s hair. “Let’s get a move on.”

            Like it or not, Harry had to comply, lest he get another severe punishment as he did the last time. Quietly, he followed behind Wormtail to the kitchen to prepare the tea and crumpets before carrying the tray to the guests who were waiting in the living room. Once he got there with Wormtail, he saw that Voldemort was in the company of 4 people including Lucius. There were 2 men—one with a long, twisted, pale face and one who looked like a shaggier, bushier version of Sirius Black—and a woman, who looked like a dark-haired, crazed-looking hollow woman dressed in a lot of mesh along with her gothic-like clothing and looked more like someone who should be kept in a mental institution. They were all looking at him with leering eyes when he came in and placed the tray of tea and crumpets on the coffee table.

            “Ah, this is the young boy you speak of, Riddle?” the man with the shaggy look asked, speaking in a very thick German or Russian accent.

            “Yes, Karkaroff. I even have the honour to be given a grand name by him,” Voldemort replied with a smug look on his face, “which will strike fear in the hearts of many.”

            “I see he wears the gift I made for you,” the man with the twisted pale face said as he reached over to touch the tag around Harry’s neck, in which the boy reflexively backed away.

            “Go away,” Harry hissed quietly. He couldn’t believe he had stooped so low back to his old life, being watched and leered at while dressed in such atrocities. He had never fell so naked, so embarrassed in his life. He felt worse than a goldfish.

            “Oh dear. It appears that he doesn’t want to be touched,” the twisted pale-faced man grinned, putting up a mock offended face at Harry’s defiance.

            “That, Dolohov, is because he cannot be touched by anyone but me,” Voldemort chuckled darkly as he pulled Harry to his side and sat him on the floor beside his chair. “I _am_ his current Master now, after all.”

            “He does look rather pretty for a boy,” the woman said as she scrutinized Harry from head to toe. “I guess it is right that you have given him this look instead. So is it true that you practice capital punishment on him?”

            “Guilty as charged.”

            “Really? Then let’s see his backside,” the guy called Karkaroff lit up with interest.

            “I’d love to see it as well, Master,” Lucius chuckled. “Judging by the way he sits down, you really let him have it. Wouldn’t you say so, Bellatrix?”

            “Most certainly, my dear brother-in-law,” the woman called Bellatrix replied. “Come, come now, you don’t have to hide from us, Master Riddle. Since you allowed us to know very well what goes beyond closed doors between you two, you might as well show us while you’re at it.”

            “Very well, but it’s not a pretty sight,” Voldermort smirked before forcing the boy to stand up and turned around before he lifted the nightie to show them. The bandages were in the way, but those present could tell from that look that it sure had a lot of damage done to it.

            “My, my, would you look at that!” Bellatrix exclaimed, faking a surprise tone before giggling deviously. “Is it really that bad that you have to bandage it like a wounded puppy, Master Riddle?”

            “See, what did I tell you, Bella?” Lucius said.

            “Now you’re just teasing me,” Voldemort laughed cruelly as he dropped the nightie back down and made Harry sit down on the floor again, stroking his hair like someone would to a pet. “So, gentlemen, and lady, where were we?”

            For the next few course of hours, the group continued to discuss their dastardly deeds, planning on their way to kill off all the remaining Potter bloodlines and start working on the non-pure wizards and witches of the world, with Harry sitting there, playing the “seen but not heard” slave he used to be. From what Harry understood from their conversation, it turned out that Antonin Dolohov, the twisted pale-faced man and the one who made the dog tag for him, had always been a devout friend and follower to Voldemort’s cause ever since they were first friends when the travelling warlock adopted Voldemort as his own. He was the one who conspired together with Voldemort to kill the warlock, who raised Voldemort like his son, and had been alongside with him and Wormtail to do his bidding until he had to go in hiding for a while together with the ratty man when Voldemort was arrested. Apparently during Voldemort’s imprisonment, Igor Karkaroff, who was the Headmaster of Durmstrang and had been following up with his cases via the media, became a fanatic follower of Voldemort’s ideology and managed to meet up with Wormtail and was the one who suggested the plan to spring Voldemort out of Azkaban. Bellatrix Lestrange, on the other hand, came forth to Lucius, demanding a real reason behind this after hearing of her sister’s arrest and indictment, and Lucius was about to make something up when Voldemort decided to show up and use his charms and told her everything, tweaking the truth on Narcissa’s part a little bit. She, smitten by his charms and fallen for his story, had became a devotee ever since.

            “That’ll be all, my loyal subjects,” Voldemort said, concluding the meeting. “I shall contact you all when the time is right.”

            “How will you do that?” Karkaroff asked worriedly. “The owlery these days have been tightly monitored and you can barely even exchange letters even among friends without having to be thoroughly checked by the Ministry.”

            “Do you think so lightly of me?” Voldemort raised a brow as he took Karkaroff’s left hand and pushed up his sleeve, revealing the latter’s wrist. He pressed the tip of his wand onto the wrist and all of a sudden, Karkaroff let out a groan and was on his knees. Everyone, including Harry, watched with morbid fascination as a sort of black entity spread through the man’s wrists, twisting and twirling to form a sort of menacing shape while the man was on his knees, writhing in pain, begging for mercy, for Voldemort to stop. Once it was done, they all saw that the black entity had taken the shape of a skull that had a snake for a tongue, curling menacingly out of its mouth. Only then, Karkaroff stopped struggling and was breathing in short gasps, his face looking like he had just been relieved of the Cruciatus curse.

            “Wh…What is that…Master Riddle?” Dolohov asked, looking like he just remembered to breathe.

            “That, my friends,” Voldemort said as he released his hold on Karkaroff’s hand, “is something I came up with recently. It’s called the Dark Mark. Whenever you feel the burning sensation that is not normal on your wrists, that is where you will have to come to me. Now who’s next?”

            Soon, one by one, the rest of the people present were experiencing what Karkaroff had experienced, and Harry watched in trepidation as all of them sported the Dark Mark on their left wrists, looking like the blood was drained from them. After regaining composure, the guests left the manor after making sure the coast was clear and Voldemort soon shifted his attention to Harry.

            “Well, today was rather eventful, wasn’t it, Liat?”

            “Yes, milord,” Harry replied quietly as he cleaned up the coffee table, in which the older man took his wrists with his cold hands and forced him to let go of the teapot and cups.

            “Let Wormtail handle the cleaning, Liat. You have a job to do.”

            “If it’s another killing, you don’t have to ask. Just do it. Not that I have a choice in that matter.”

            “As tempting as it sounds, that is not what I have in mind. It’s something you and I know that you are very efficient of,” Voldemort put his hands on either side of the boy’s shoulders from behind, having his lips close to the boy’s ear as he whispered, “and you know what I’m talking about, Liat.”

            “No,” Harry said flatly, flinching his shoulders as he tried to make the older man let his hold go off him. “I’m not doing it.”

            “Oh, don’t be too quick to deny me, Liat,” Voldemort chuckled deviously as he dangerously ran his fingers along Harry’s baby bump. “If you know what’s good for you.”

            Harry cursed under his breath. He knew he was going to use his child as leverage to get what he wants, and there was nothing he could do about it. He relaxed his shoulders and hung his head in defeat, giving his reluctant consent. Voldemort smirked and led the boy to his bedroom. Once in the bedroom and the door closed, Voldemort made Harry go down on his knees and opened his robe to reveal the tent on his crotch.

            “You know what to do, Liat.”

            Harry nodded sadly and undid his pants, pulling him out and started to stroke him. As he heard the older man hissed at the contact, he leaned in, licking the top then took it in his mouth, and moaned around him like he was trained to do. He knew it was no different than what he used to do when he was still a slave back then, but somehow, it still disgusted him, knowing that he was sucking someone else’s cock other than Severus’, but he had no choice. His baby’s life was at stake.

            “Ooh, yes…Feels so good, Liat…You’ve got a great mouth there…” Voldemort moaned as he laced his fingers around Harry’s ebony locks. Harry responded by taking him whole to the root then pulled off.

            “P…Please…milord…d…don’t come in my mouth…”

            “Why not?”

            “I…It’s not…good for the baby,” Harry looked up with pleading eyes. “Please, you…you can do anything but…but don’t make me…”

            Voldemort stared long and hard at him before rolling his eyes and replied, “Very well, Liat. You drive a hard bargain. But I’m not going to let you off so lightly.”

            So saying, Voldemort magicked Harry’s nightie away and shoved him onto the bed. He pulled the boy’s butt onto his lap, holding his legs close in a death grip, then used a lube spell to coat his fingers, entering one deliberately slow into him, making the boy moan and grab his shoulders.

            “What’s wrong, Liat? Starting to enjoy it, like the whore you are?” Voldemort grinned as he entered another one infuriating slow, brushing _very_ lightly at the sweet spot to tease him.

            “N…No…It’s not true…” Harry breathed, putting his head in Voldemort’s chest, not wanting him to see his face starting to flush red.

            “I will try your pussy later, but for now,” Voldemort chuckled and entered a third finger, again brushing against the sweet spot but not really getting there, “let’s see how tight your ass really is. I’ve heard stories from dear Malfoy, and I’m very eager to try it.”

            The older man brushed the sweet spot again, laughing as he watched Harry’s breathing getting more and more erratic against his will, his little hands gripping at his shoulders tighter as he tried to hold back something that was starting to build up at the pit of his stomach.

            “Feel like you’re gonna come, Liat? Well, you’re gonna have to wait for me.”

            Without warning, Voldemort whispered a heavy amount of lube spell on his rod before entering him fully, making the boy shake and his nails biting into the man’s back.

            “I…It hurts…”

            “Oh, yes, Liat,” Voldemort groaned as he started a steady rhythm, pinning the boy’s wrists down. “It hurts real good, doesn’t it? Mmh…Hard to believe that you can still stay so tight after being fucked and knocked up by a man who should be holing in his cave in all his lonesome.”

            “N…No! D…Don’t say th…that! H…He’s not like that…” Harry whined, arching his back and threw his head to the side, feeling so bad for letting his body be ravaged by this man.

            “Too bad he couldn’t be here, though, seeing you like this, all spread out with your ass being penetrated by the man who will change this world.”

            Soon the man started increasing his speed, his cock piston in and out until he found the right angle where he hit the prostate just right, making the boy arch more as he let out involuntary moans. He tried to cover his mouth, but Voldemort’s grip on his wrists was so strong that he couldn’t pull out to do so. He didn’t know why, but somehow he was feeling extra sensitive and the feeling of his prostate being assaulted like that was tenfold the usual feeling he had and the pit of his stomach becoming tighter and tighter at a faster rate than normal. As the man moved even faster, harder and deeper, attacking the boy’s nipples, Harry could no longer hold back. He felt the pit of his stomach snap and he couldn’t stop from coming, but unlike his orgasm as a boy through his cock, he was coming through his vagina, squirting something warm, musky and wet—almost like pee, but in reality it wasn’t—all over Voldemort’s thighs and on the bed, and the feeling was tenfold as his whole body felt like he was being mildly electrocuted. Voldemort hissed as the inner muscles of the boy’s ass clamped around his rod. Holding back, he pulled out and leaned down to attack his nipples with his mouth and fingers, making the boy squirm.

            “M…Milord…please…stop…No more…” Harry whimpered, his whole body feeling oversensitive from the orgasm.

            “You came without my permission, and only from taking it up the ass,” Voldemort smiled deviously as his hand reaches to touch Harry’s already swollen clit from the orgasm. “A slut like you should be punished.”

            “No, milord, please…” Harry whined. “I…I don’t…want this…”

            “Liar. Look at you,” Voldemort said as he fondled the pussy and started rubbing his clit. “You’re so wet and you just had the biggest orgasm of your life, apparently. I guess it’s true that sex feels much better when you are pregnant.”

            “N…No! No, that’s not true…!” Harry cried as he covered his eyes with his free arm.

            “You want it so badly, don’t you? Admit it.”

            Harry shook his head, tears streaming down his face. His mind was telling him that this was wrong, that he just had an orgasm from another man’s cock, that he was, in a way, cheating on Severus, but his body was shaking, trembling and wanting more. How could his entire persona be so conflicting? This was not making any sense, but it was happening right here, right now, and not with the man he loved. All he could do was beg.

            “P…Please…milord…no…”

            “I’ll make you feel good, Liat.”

            Without warning, Voldemort leaned down and continued to massage and rub the clit, but at a harder and faster pace this time. Harry threw his head back, screaming. It was so wrong in so many ways, but at the same time it felt so good that he couldn’t stand it. He was coming all over Voldemort’s fingers, but he was still hard and swollen, and the dull ache on his pussy was not exactly helping as it exploded again and again, squirting out his juice.

            “Mmh, feels good, doesn’t it, Liat?” Voldemort hummed as he massaged it some more to maximize his orgasm.

            “Stop, stop…!” Harry tried to push Voldemort’s hand away, feeling like he was on overload. “Please…I…I don’t want this…!”

            “You will soon. You’ll want it so bad you don’t want it to stop,” the older man chuckled as he lubricated his own cock with the juices from Harry’s pussy before slowly entering him in one single thrust, making the boy gasp and arch his back.

            “T…Take it out…! Please…milord…!!”

            “Oh, you don’t mean that now, do you? See how much your body is enjoying this?” Voldemort grinned as he teased Harry’s clit. “Your body is so much honest than you are.”

            Harry couldn’t hold back the moan that escaped his lips. His body felt like molten lava, but at the same time it feel somewhat painful for the man’s cock to be up there where there never should have been, being that technically it was more or less a virgin vagina. But the pleasure was too great for him to deny that he did not enjoy it even a little, and he hated himself for it.

            “See? You _are_ enjoying it. Your body doesn't lie.”

            So saying, Voldemort started thrusting in a steady rhythm. Harry put his hand over his eyes as they started to leak again, fresh tears pouring down his cheeks as the older man starts to pick up his speed, licking the tears off the boy’s eyes while his hands massaged Harry’s ass, bringing himself deeper and deeper into him. Harry continued to sob, his body going against his mind as it bucked and arched at every thrust the man made. His heart was not into this but his body was definitely defying his heart as he felt himself close to another orgasm.

            “I…I’m close…milord…” Harry whined, his hands gripping tightly at the bed sheets, allowing his body to do all the talking.

            “Mmh, yeah,” Voldemort growled as he finally aimed for the G-spot. “Come for me, Liat. Scream my name.”

            Harry, of course, didn’t do it. The only name he would scream was for Severus. He bit his lip until it bled as his vagina muscles clamped down on him when his orgasm hit, feeling like a wrung out dish towel. The tight muscles from his orgasm finally made Voldemort snap as he pulled out and let loose his load all over the boy’s body, covering him with his warm seed before lying down on him, panting like he had run a 10-mile long marathon while Harry’s head lulled to the side, not wanting to look at him. Voldemort chuckled darkly as he ran his tongue along the trail of tears on Harry’s cheek.

            “Malfoy was right; you _are_ as amazing as he claimed to be. As much as I want to come inside you, I know it is not wise in your condition, but don’t say I didn’t do you any favours.”

            Harry, after Voldemort got off him, cleaned up, got dressed and left the room to do goodness knows what, curled up in a fetal position and cried Severus’ name again and again, feeling so dirty and so guilty over what he had allowed himself to do.

            He feared for the life ahead of him, and feared it greatly.


	67. Chapter 67

            Harry looked down sadly at the body strewn across his feet and glanced at Wormtail striking off the last name off the family tree scroll. He had finally helped Voldemort locate his last and final Potter bloodline and was now in pieces on the floor. She was alone with no next of kin and she was just a normal girl who used to work at Flourish & Blotts. She didn’t stand a chance against the forces of the advanced magic Voldemort had and suffered the wrath of his vengeance, while he stood by watching her go down in pieces knowing that he brought Death to her doorstep.

            It soon dawned to him that he was finally the last Potter on earth, unless there were other people who were not blood-related to him that shared the same last name. He was all alone in this world now with no other known family members of his own and there was nothing he could do to stop this madness or with what was about to come. He turned to face the fireplace to scrape at the bricks when he felt the familiar cold arm around his waist.

            “Great work, Liat,” Voldemort said as he whispered to his ear. “We have finally rid of all the members of the Potter family tree, and I couldn’t have done it without you.”

            “I’m not going to take credit for your treachery,” Harry mumbled as he continued to scrape at the bricks.

            “Well, at least you can look at it this way: You’re the last of your kind now and you are now finally the special one, and that’ll soon make the two of you once your baby is born. But then again, don’t count on it.”

            “If you _dare_ lay a finger on my baby, I swear to _God_ …!!” Harry snapped at Voldemort, only to be silenced by a handful of his hair grabbed by the latter.

            “God has nothing to do with what’s happening right now, Liat, and God is not going to save a wretched soul like you, you who had a hand in killing all these people. Deal with it.”

            So saying, he let go of the boy harshly, pushing him away and would’ve made him fall to the floor if it weren’t for Wormtail catching him in time. Harry wanted to say something but Wormtail shook his head warningly, giving him the look that told him he should keep his mouth shut while Voldemort was still in his good mood, though the cause of the good mood was nothing more than disturbing. Harry sighed and let it go, returning to the fireplace to scrape at the bricks while Voldemort went around searching for something to keep as his trophy.

            “Oh yes, by the way, Liat. You are to ‘entertain’ Malfoy tonight.”

            “W…What…?!” Harry looked up at him incredulously from his scraping on the bricks.

            “You heard me.”

            “W…What for…?”

            “It’s a bargain I made with him. I returned him what he prizes the most and now that he has it back, he is very eager to try it out, and I promise to reward you to him for him playing his part in my plans to perform the Potter genocide, and I’m not one to break promises and balk out on bargains.”

            “Then why can’t you just get a woman or man to fuck with him?! Surely you can do that in a heartbeat!”

            “He specifically wanted you, and like I said, I’m not one to break promises. So get your act together and go to his room tonight. Are we clear or do you need ‘reminding’ again?”

            Harry knew what that meant. He hung his head and shook it quietly, “No…I…I understand…”

            “Good. So you two play nice now.”

            Harry felt as if he could just gut him with a splicing curse if he had his wand right now.

\--:--

            “It’s so good for you to be back in my arms again, boy.”

            Harry flinched as the older blonde held him. His mind was screaming protests all the way towards Lucius’ room, where he shared with his wife and Remus back when he was still Lucius’ slave, when he was reminded by Wormtail to obey Voldemort’s orders to fulfill the bargain the two older men had made, but unfortunately the phantom feeling of Voldemort’s punishment on him was a little too much of a painful reminder for him to comply regardless whether he wanted it or not. As soon as he knocked the door, he was immediately pulled into the room and was in Lucius’ arms, but his hug was nowhere near sincere.

            “Don’t touch me,” Harry tried to pry away from him only to be held tighter.

            “Now, now, boy,” Lucius said as he ran his finger along the boy’s chin. “You know you abide by your lord’s command.”

            “Doesn’t mean I have to like it or make it easy for you.”

            “Ah, I beg to differ, boy,” Lucius grinned as he snaked under the nightie to tease the tip of Harry’s clit, making the boy shudder and bit his lip. He ran his finger down the clit, making slow teasing massages and Harry started to pant on his chest.

            Harry cursed himself mentally. Why did his hormones have to act up right now when he didn’t want them to?

            “Feels good, doesn’t it, boy?” Lucius chuckled as Harry shook his head in denial. “Your body doesn’t lie, boy. Being pregnant makes the sex all the more pleasurable. I should know; I had a wife. Let’s see if it feels even better this way.”

            So saying, he laid Harry down on the four-post canopy bed he and his wife (and Remus and other slaves) used to share, then lifted the nightie all the way until his upper body was shown before he sucked and nibbled at his nipples in turn while his hand continued to massage and rub the clit, increasing the speed a little. Harry squirmed and writhed against his fingers, grabbing at the sheets while his mind telling his body in vain to stop feeling like this.

            “N…No…! No! If…If you keep d…doing this, I’ll…”

            “Come? Do it. Don’t hold back.”

            With another series of hard rubbing, Harry’s inner muscles soon clamped down as he came, squirting his juice all over the blonde man’s hand and on the sheets. Lucius felt the come on his fingers and waited until Harry stopped twitching before licking it off.

            “Mmm…an exquisite bittersweet taste. It’s been so long since I had such taste from a woman. Well, technically you’re half a woman, but no matter.”

            “Sh…Shut up…I hate you…” Harry replied as he covered his face with his hands, feeling even worse than he was when he was manhandled by Voldemort.

            “Yes, well, I couldn’t care less now, could I?” Lucius positioned himself between Harry’s legs. “I’ve finally got what I wanted back after so long and I intend on using it, so you better show me a good time, boy.”

            With that, Lucius lubed himself up with Harry’s come and slowly inches himself in all the way to the hilt. Harry let out a strangled scream and tried to push him away.

            “N…No!! S-Stop…! Take it out…!!”

            “What’s wrong, boy?” Lucius smirked as he moved in a steady rhythm. “Too much for you to handle?”

            “T-Too full…!!” Harry whined, gripping at the blonde’s shoulders and trying to push him off. “D-D-Don’t move…! Please…You’re r-r-ripping me apart…!!”

            “Mmh…You feel so good right now, boy. You can’t expect me to stop, can you? Damn…so tight…like I’m fucking a virgin…”

            Ignoring the boy’s screams and cries, he increased his speed, slowly aiming for the G-spot he knew where to hit from his experience of fucking women. Harry bucked up against him despite his mind telling him not to, his body instinctively clinging onto the older blonde as his body allowed a little bit of sexual drive take over, begging for the huge cock to go harder even though his heart was trying in vain to will it to resist.

            “You like it, don’t you, boy? You want me to go harder, don’t you? Such a slut,” Lucius smirked at Harry’s indignant face, ignoring the boy’s whimpers as he shook his head ‘No’. “Very well, as you wish then.”

            Lucius soon hit harder, spreading the boy’s legs a little wider to aim better, in which Harry covered his mouth to hold back the screams that was getting louder by the minute. He may have made him feel good, but he wasn’t going to give him the pleasure of knowing that, although his body was shaking with impending release. It was not far that he would come the second time around but his heart will defy him till the end, even if his body would not.

            “Mmh, yeah, I can feel your pussy starting to clamp on my cock. Are you about to come soon, boy?”

            “Sh…Shut up…!! I’m not…” Harry snapped back, trying to keep from coming. _Dammit, why does it feel so good…? I don’t want this…!_

            “Come on, boy, don’t be shy,” Lucius chuckled darkly as he plunged a little deeper and harder into him. “Come whenever you want. A woman can come quite a number of times with that pussy of theirs; I’m sure the same applies to you with this.”

            A few more thrusts and Harry lost it, letting out a muffled scream on his hands as he came for the second time despite himself.

            “Mmh~! You’re really gripping me in…!” Lucius groaned, feeling the muscles clamping him tightly as he hit at the G-spot a few more times to maximize the boy’s orgasm.

            “D…Don’t come…inside…b…baby…” Harry spoke incoherently, his whole body felt like it would be drained if he carried on juicing him off like this.

            Harry’s continuous orgasm clamped down on the older blonde until he couldn’t hold back. He finally managed to pull out and released his load all over the boy, groaning out loud with pleasure. His body trembled as he let loose everything onto the boy, gasping for breath as the tremors eased done while he covered the boy’s body with his warm seed. As soon as he calmed down, Lucius smiled cruelly and leaned down to run his tongue along the tears and sweat that lingered on the boy’s face.

            “You’re lucky you’re with child, or I would’ve inseminated you myself and have you making babies for me,” Lucius chuckled at the way the boy looked back at him in horror at the thought. “It feels good, doesn’t it, boy? To come over and over again from my cock?”

            “N…No…” Harry flinched as Lucius licked him some more. “Th…That’s not true…You made me…”

            “But you were the one coming non-stop, not me,” Lucius replied deviously. “Twice, as a matter of fact, while I only came once. You really are a slut at heart, aren’t you?”

            “No! No, I’m not! I’m not a slut! I came because you made me; I never wanted this!”

            “Keep telling yourself that, boy, and you might just believe it. What I’d give to see the look on Sev’s face when he sees you and I fucking like rabbits right now.”

            “N…No…” Harry sobbed, fresh tears pouring out of his eyes. “Anything but that…Don’t…”

            “Wanna have another go, boy?” Lucius asked as he teased Harry’s sensitive clit again, a little harder than before.

            “H…Haven’t you had e…enough…?”

            “I’m nowhere near done yet with you, boy. Not after being unable to use this for such a long, long time, and I intend to make use of it until I’m spent on you.”

            Without warning, the older blonde lube himself back up with Harry’s excess juice around his pussy before entering him with one swift thrust, making the boy gasp.

            “No! No, please, I don’t want it anymore! S…Stop!!” Harry cried, trying to push him away, in which Lucius held his wrists done to his sides.

            “Mmh, yeah, don’t hold back on me. Let yourself loose as much as you want.”

            Lucius starts thrusting him fast and deep, brushing against the G-spot. Harry, who was already sensitive from his second orgasm, couldn’t hold back as his G-spot was brushed against with such velocity as he came for a third time so soon, his hands twisted in the sheets. Lucius groaned in ecstasy at the way Harry’s inner muscles clamped around him so tight and laughed out loud at the way Harry’s body was enjoying all this despite his defiant face. He aimed the G-spot just right, in a way that he knew would drive any woman crazy (since he had done this so many times with Narcissa and his female slaves), and soon enough, Harry was just screaming and sobbing, looking both pleasured and devastated at the same time. And, oh, what a beautiful face he made for him, a face of conflicting emotions. It was turning him on in more ways than one—that and also the clamping sensation of Harry’s muscles was too much. He knew he was going to let loose sooner than he thought as he thrust in deeper, harder and faster.

            “Please…please don’t come…inside…My baby…” Harry managed to beg in the midst of his whine.

            “Well, your pussy,” Lucius panted as he pummeled the spot relentlessly, “is not making it any easier to control myself, is it?”

            “Please…Just don’t…!” Harry thrashed about, feeling his orgasm building again. “I beg you…please…”

            Lucius did not respond. He maneuvered Harry until the boy was on all fours, lifting his hips up and jabbed the G-spot mercilessly, making the boy scream even more as his orgasm started. Harry gripped the sheets, ripping them as his body felt pleasure that he was not supposed to be feeling from being raped. It was like despite his brain telling him not to enjoy this, his senses were in hyper drive as he squeezed harder and harder around Lucius’ cock, his body was in like in a seizure as it was draining out of energy, the electrical jolts of euphoria racked his entire body from head to toe, his lips pouring out incoherent nonsense.

            Lucius almost couldn’t pull out from the tight grip Harry had on him. He would’ve shot his load into the boy if he hadn’t had his hands gripped on Harry’s hips for leverage as he pulled out, sandwiched it between the boy’s buttcheeks and came all over the boy’s back. Harry let out one last sob as he passed out from this unwanted pleasure, his breathing slowly going back to normal, while Lucius lay down on Harry, his weight almost crushing the boy, his cock still sandwiched between Harry’s buttcheeks as he trembled down his last tremors.

            “Oh, I’m going to have so much more fun with you, boy. Just you wait and see.”


	68. Chapter 68

            Draco and Remus were enjoying a warm bath together in the tub, flipping through some catalogues Hermione got for Draco on baby items. There was a wide variety to choose from, but of course, since they already know the gender of their children, they focused on the items for girls.

            “What about this one?” Remus asked as he pointed at a set of blue dresses that matched with a pair of silver-blue hoods.

            “Naw,” Draco wrinkled his nose and shook his head. “Too blue for me. I think peach-pink is nicer.”

            “Didn’t think for you to be a pink person,” Remus grinned at him, twirling his finger around a strand of Draco’s blonde hair.

            “Tease,” Draco pouted, swatting the hand away gently.

            After looking through some more, they decided to call it quits and pick on the items later in favour of finishing their bath. As Remus helped to soap up Draco, he stole a look at Draco’s crotch.

            “Hmm, it seems like the birth canal is coming out nicely.”

            “Well, Mrs. Sinistra said I am coming close to my 7th month, so I suppose it is bound to happen,” Draco blushed a little, remembering just a few days ago, he felt a dull ache between his legs and was worried something was wrong with the twins or that he was having a miscarriage, only to find that he was growing an extra part for his upcoming birth 2 months later. “Even the book says so.”

            “It looks almost like you’re having a pussy in addition of your cock here,” Remus said as he teased the canal a little bit. It didn’t have the necessary parts like a vagina should, but it was definitely almost as big as one, and when Remus nudged it, it felt like pressing against a tight anal entrance, though it felt a little different than that.

            “D…Don’t do that…” Draco whined as he winced from Remus prodding the birth canal.

            “Why not?” Remus asked, grinning mischievously as he continued to prod the canal. “You’re actually turned on, aren’t you, by a part that shouldn’t be there?”

            “No, I’m not,” Draco denied, even though his cock was reacting to the touch. _Damn these hormones,_ he cursed inwardly.

            “Oh yes, you are,” Remus said as his hand continued to tease his canal, while his other hand flicked at his nipple. Against his better judgment, or there lack of, Draco moved his hand down to stroke his cock under the water, whining behind bitten lip at the sensation. After seeing Draco’s cock started to twitch and come to life, he picked him up out of the tub and placed him on the bathroom counter.

            “Mmh, I’ve got something that’ll make you feel much better.”

            So saying, he knelt down to lick his birth canal, while his hand was busy paying attention to the blonde’s cock, pumping it gently, making the blonde mewl and thrust his hips a little.

            “Oh, gods. You have never done this before. Oh, God!!”

            “Mmm…Delicious…” Remus muttered as he licked deeper into his canal, his hand rubbing at the cock with the same pace at the same time.

            “Oh, Remy…” Draco ran his hand through Remus’ hair. “Deeper, please…”

            Remus did so, literally tongue-fucking him as his hand stroke the cock even harder. He could feel his own cock starting to throb and soar, dripping with pre-cum as he carried on with his ministration.

            “I’m…I’m coming, Remy…” Draco whined, his body starting to tremble already.

            “Come,” Remus whispered, continuing on with a bit more force. “Come all over my face. I wanna feel your warm seed on my face.”

            With that, Draco let loose, his whole body shivered and trembled with the force. Remus shut his eyes so that he wouldn’t get an eyeful, but he could taste the cum as some of it squirted into his mouth. It tasted just as addictive as ever as he drank in every drop, stroking the cock to milk him out some more. Draco gripped Remus’ wrist that pumped him when it was getting a little too much to handle.

            “Please…stop…Too much…”

            “Too good for you, love?” Remus stopped, but ran his tongue along Draco’s inner thigh.

            “Yes,” Draco panted. “Let me return the favour. It’s been a while since I had your cock in my mouth.”

            “If you wish so,” Remus replied as he helped Draco off the counter, then put the toilet seat lid down and sat on it, spreading his legs for Draco.

            Draco soon got on his knees to work his magic on the cock, licking up and down, then taking them as much as he could, bobbing them up and down, tasting the pre-cum as he went.

            “I love you,” Draco whispered between his blowjobs. “I love you so much, Remy.”

            “Mmh…” Remus moaned as he felt the wonderful wet heat engulfed him over and over again. “Yes, my mate. I love you too. I love you more than life itself. You are my whole life.”

            “S…Sorry…” Draco panted, leaning into him after bobbing a few more times. “I want you to make love to me now. I can’t take it anymore…”

            “I wouldn’t have it any other way, my mate.”

            With that, he got up, dried both himself and Draco before carrying him into the bedroom and lay him down, peppering him with kisses all over his body, his hand preparing his beloved, spreading their usual lube he got from the bedside drawer within Draco’s ass and his own cock. Slowly, he slid it, making Draco hissed slightly with pleasure.

            “God! It feels so good…!” Draco panted.

            “Ooh, yeah. I missed this tight hole as well.”

            Remus waited to adjust before moving in a slow rhythm so as not to hurt him. It had been a while since he fucked him ever since he was diagnosed by Mrs. Sinistra on the blonde’s birth canal. It was so tight, and Draco was grabbing him, throwing his head back in approval as he reached his hand down to stroke himself. The half-wolf slowly built up momentum, fucking him harder, faster and deeper until finally he hit that prostate he loved so much, making Draco pant and yell and scream and just about everything else.

            “Dear fuck…!! I’m going to come…!!” Draco whined, the pit of his stomach starting to tighten in that familiar grip.

            “Yes, yes, come for me,” Remus groaned as he pushed in even deeper, assaulting the spot mercilessly. He was so tight; he was going to lose it soon. “Come and wrap your tight ass around me…!”

            Draco soon swore as he gripped a sheet till it ripped from his orgasm, his system in overload. As Draco came, his inner muscles clamped around him just like he used to, squeezing him pleasurably hard. He quickly pulled put before coming long and hard onto him, screaming out Draco’s name. As soon as the younger blonde came down from his high, he noticed the torn sheet.

            “Oh boy, I ruined Sirius’ sheet,” Draco chuckled. “That was some orgasm, huh?”

            “That sure was,” Remus chuckled along as well once his mind cleared enough to see the rip. “Master Black would be very displeased about this.”

            “Ah, fuck him. I never really like his taste of sheets anyway. He’s gonna be too drunk off his ass to notice the roof come down on him, let alone the sheets being ripped.”

            “You’re right. Fuck him. But first…” Remus leaned down to kiss Draco, “I’ll have to fuck you.”

            “Horny toad,” Draco stuck out his tongue playfully as he pinched the older man’s nose before letting out a soft gasp as his nipples were attacked.

\--:--

            “Merlin’s beard!”

            Remus quickly leaned over to read the headlines on the Daily Prophet that Draco was browsing through. Paprika, who was serving them breakfast in bed, also leaned over curiously.

            “It seems that this Voldemort psycho is back on track,” Draco read the article. “He’s tracked down the rest of the relocated Potters around the area at a dead-on accuracy. Fudge has just announced that the Potter bloodline had extinct entirely.”

            “It does sound disturbing,” Remus said thoughtfully.

            “How exactly is he doing all this?” Paprika asked. “What sort of god-like powers has he got to able to retrace his steps? I thought Master Black and Mistress Tonks said that the Potters have been relocated into safe-houses that were totally unrevealed, not even to the press or the members of the Ministry themselves.”

            “He’s not a god. He’s a wizard like all of us, albeit a twisted one. He must have had help.”

            “Three guesses that it would lead to my father,” Draco rolled his eyes, and felt two kicks, as if the twins agreed with his statement.

            “Hang on a second,” Remus said as he took the paper and studied the picture taken. “I think I see something.”

            They all came close to look at what he was pointing, which was something located at the walls of the fireplace where Voldemort and his team had his last kill on the Blaine-Potter girl. Draco frowned and squinted his eyes, but couldn’t make out what he was trying to show him.

            “Uh, Remy love, we don’t have that wolf eyesight like you, you know.”

            “Oh, sorry, my mate,” Remus apologized, then looked at the picture again. “Can I borrow this?”

            “Well, it’s not like Master Black is gonna miss it,” Paprika shrugged, in which Draco giggled, knowing that Sirius would probably be too drunk to even know where his stuff has been misplaced.

            “I’ll have to go see Master Snape with this. Please try to sober Master Black up. He might need to know this too.”

            “Wait,” Draco grabbed onto his wrist. “What is it that you see?”

            “I’ll tell you later.”

            With that, Remus gave a kiss on Draco’s forehead and got dressed up before disappearing into the fireplace, leaving Draco and Paprika to stare at each other listlessly.


	69. Chapter 69

            “Our place has been compromised. You will have to move out to another safer location, Master Riddle.”

            Harry looked up curiously at Lucius who brought the Daily Prophet for Voldemort to read. Seeing the headlines, he knew that it would spell bad news for the two adults and good news for the boy. His heart almost leapt in joy as he tried not to show it on his face, continuing to serve Voldemort his breakfast as if he hadn’t heard anything.

            Apparently, Remus had finally found Harry’s secret messages that the boy tended to scrape and scrawl at any place he could find during the Potter genocide. Harry had been doing that in places he hoped the Aurors would see during the processing of the crime scene after that first kill he had helped made on Wolfen and his family. It was too small for the naked eye to see, but for Remus’ who has heightened senses, including an amazing wolf-like eyesight, had seen Harry’s scrawling on one of the brick of the fireplace when they went to kill the Blaine-Potter girl that read : HELP, LM, and Lady Luck probably had a hand in doing this, since if the reporter had not taken the picture of the fireplace, Remus wouldn’t have seen this secret message. After enlarging the picture and put together the puzzle of what the LM initials stood for, Lucius has heard word that the Aurors will be conducting a thorough search of his manor the next morning.

            “How is that possible?” Voldemort looked up at him accusingly. “I thought you had everything under control.”

            “I swear I have,” Lucius quickly defended himself. “But I have no idea how it is possible that they knew you were here, and they will not disclose their source, not even to the press or to the Ministry themselves. And I heard that they will be bringing along some people from the Department of Mysteries just to make double sure that all hiding places are eliminated, so any invisibility wards or any of my underground catacombs and secret passageways are out of the question.”

            “It does sound troubling.”

            After puzzling over the situation, Voldemort decided to make his next hideout at his biological father’s home, since staying at his adopted father’s place would probably be a little risky especially when Lucius warned him that it would be the first place the Auror will look since the warlock was closest of a family to Voldemort than anyone else. Harry made a mental note to remember the name of the place so that he could be able to send off his new secret message.

            “Prepare my bath, Liat,” Voldemort said as he finished the last of his breakfast. “We will set off to the Riddle Manor immediately after that.”

            “Y…Yes, milord,” Harry nodded and went upstairs to prepare the bath. As the tub filled, he unconsciously rubbed his still flat belly, hoping that it was still alright. So far, he had yet to feel anything that might indicate that his child was no longer with him, meaning that either he had a survivor for a child or they were holding back on punishing him (which would probably be far-fetched, though hopefully so). His imagination wandered to the thought of the first time he helped Severus run his bath, the way they shared it together as they bathed each other head to toe on the day he woke up from his long sleep and be briefed of his duty in the household, the way that Severus would always give him an appreciative smile or a pat on the head to thank him for a bath well run, and the way they would share their passion together in that cold tiles surrounded by warm mists from the hot water. He wrapped his arms around himself, imagining that he was back in Severus’ arms again, feeling his wonderful touches and his loving caresses around his body, giving him that true sense of security…

            “Thinking about me, boy?”

            Harry broke out of his thoughts to see Voldemort undressing behind him. He looked away, disgusted.

            “You wish.”

            “Excited to move to a new home? It’ll be my old home where I was forcibly raised by my so-called father, though I’m glad I took care of that problem. I think most probably there will be new tenants there, and new hired help as well, but we’ll definitely take care of that. Of course, it still means that you’re under my wing and still are under my command. You’re my favourite, after all.”

            “Yes, milord, I will keep up appearances,” Harry replied, looking down. “I’ll be a good little slave. The water is probably cold now, since you took your time coming up. Do you want me to drain it and refill?”

            “No need,” Voldemort said as he waved a spell to make it warm again, then magicked Harry’s clothes away before picking Harry up and put him into the bath first before joining him. “You just need to do what you are born to do, and you know exactly what that is.”

            “Yes, milord,” Harry replied reluctantly, praying that this time he wouldn’t make him lose the baby.

            “Mmm…someone’s eager today, aren’t we?”

            Voldemort grinned deviously as he teased Harry’s clit as he flicked a tongue at his nipple. Harry bit his lip, holding back a whine while the older man continued to suckle at his nipples while his fingers inched into him, teasing the clit and finger-fucking him at the same time. Harry would’ve threaded his fingers through his hair if it weren’t for the fact that the one finger-fucking him and nibbling occasionally at his nipples while being sucked was Voldemort and not his beloved Severus. Gripping at the sides of the tub, Harry involuntarily let out a moan as Voldemort soon took out his fingers and replaced them with himself, slowly burying his cock into all the way to the hilt.

            “Mmh, sex really is better when you are pregnant now, doesn’t it?” Voldemort said as he leaned down to kiss him, holding onto Harry’s cheeks to keep him from turning away from him.

            “Nnh…! No…it’s…it’s not…” Harry panted, throwing his head back when the older man held onto his hips and thrust into him slowly, his inner muscles reflexively gripping him like there was no tomorrow.

            “Your mouth says ‘No’ but I know your body is agreeing with me,” Voldemort thrust into him faster while he caressed Harry’s still-flat belly. “Shall we give your baby his early taste of milk and see if he likes it?”

            “N…No…!! Don’t! Anything but that…!” Harry bit his lip as his G-spot was aimed just right. “Don’t come inside me, I beg you, milord…!”

            “You look so cute when you’re begging me like that, Liat. Makes me feel almost sorry that you’re my slave and not my intended.”

            “I…I’m g…gonna…” Harry panted, not wanting to give Voldemort the satisfaction of knowing that he was going to make him come from the thrusts, although his body was pushing down a little to meet Voldemort’s thrusts, as if screaming for Harry to give in and let it hit right there, just right there.

            “Mmh, so tight…so good…I’m gonna come too…”

            Once Voldemort maneuvered to hit the spot where Harry pushed against him, Harry soon lost it, his inner muscles clenched around the older man as he came, his whole body shaking and convulsing. The muscle clench made Voldemort came seconds later, and he barely was able to pull out from the tightness, squirting his seed into the water. As soon as Harry stopped shaking like he had an epileptic seizure, he laid his head on Voldemort’s shoulder, trying to hide his face from Voldemort, not wanting him to see that feel-good look on his face which he hated displaying at the moment from that major orgasm, though the older man was smarter than that as he took the boy’s chin to push the face upwards so that he could see his handiwork.

            “That was nice, Liat,” Voldemort chuckled as he ran his tongue along the boy’s lightning bolt scar, making the boy flinch. “ _You_ were really nice.”

            “Save it,” Harry replied in defiance, even though he was only allowed a little of it.

            “I can’t wait to move in to our new hideout, where we can bless the place with our love-making.”

            Harry dare not say it, but what they share was nothing more than just plain fucking.

\--:--

            The Riddle Manor was just as creepy and malicious as Voldemort himself as Harry took his first glimpse around once they Floo-ed in through the fireplace. The place looked like it could use some serious spring-cleaning, showing how long abandoned the manor was, but it seemed that everything was still in place and whoever lived here last had lived with class, what with the furniture looking like it was bought for a king’s ransom. There had been evidence of people who camped out or partied all over the floor, judging by the beer bottles and snack wrappers everywhere, but other than that, there were no signs of life.

            While Lucius stayed behind at the Malfoy Manor entertaining the search party, Voldemort, Harry and Wormtail had quickly packed their things prior to their visit and made their way through the Floo Network, reconnecting the magic and adjusting the flow so as to connect the fireplace to the one at Riddle Manor for a one-time trip before Lucius severed the network connection to conceal it from prying eyes of the staff of the Department of Mysteries. It wasn’t easy, being that the Riddle Manor was way out in the outbacks of the Muggle world, but they managed to get it done in the nick of time and left just a few hours before the search party came with the Ministry Decree for their surprise search. Once they were there, the first thing Voldemort did was go over to the nearest window to look outside.

            “Hmm, looks like the old caretaker is still living,” Voldemort said as he peeked outside the window to see a dilapidated hut just opposite the manor. “Wormtail, go take care of him. And make it a clean one this time, mind you.”

            “Yes, Master. Right away, Master,” Wormtail bowed before making his way out of the manor and morphed into his animagus form to go to the hut undetected.

            “W…What are you going to do to him, milord? Not kill him, I hope,” Harry said as he stood there, unsure whether to stop Wormtail or let him carry out Voldemort’s orders.

            “That old man has outlived his decades as a Muggle anyway,” Voldemort grinned deviously as he ran his hands along the armchair that seemed to bring him nostalgic memories. “I’m just letting him retire from his service of looking after the home, is all. He has done well to keep this place unoccupied as per stated in my father’s will.”

            “Your…father’s will?”

            “Of course, I have to tweak it a little to make sure that the manor goes under me before I poisoned him to death. The will states that unless the true Riddle heir has returned, this house is to be given out to no one and anyone who trespasses here must be severely dealt with, all measures taken.”

            “Then you don’t have to off the caretaker, just go tell him then.”

            “And alert the wizarding world?” Voldemort tsked as he tickled the boy’s chin. “We can’t take any chances, my dear Liat. That caretaker could be working for the Ministry, for all we know, after my little…escapade these few years. Better safe than sorry,” he paused when Wormtail had returned, “I assume you made it clean this time, Wormtail?”

            “Yes, Master. Very clean, Master,” Wormtail nodded eagerly, grinning through his ratty face. “He never knew what hit him. It’s like as if he died in his sleep. No one would suspect anything, not even the Muggles or any wizards or Mudbloods living nearby.”

            “Good. Now off with you. Clean up the place or ward up this manor or something. Liat and I have a little ‘housewarming’ to do.”

            Wormtail bowed before quickly leaving to do his usual menial tasks. As ironic as it may sound, Harry didn’t want Wormtail to leave. He’d rather have him around than being left alone with this man who took pleasure in torturing people for his own entertainment, but he knew it was wishful thinking. He could not defy Voldemort in his condition now and he knew Wormtail would follow this wretched man down to ends of the earth. And he did not need to be a genius to know that once he was left alone with this bastard, he was to serve his purpose other than serving him material needs.

            “So, shall we get started on a little house-warming there, Liat?” Voldemort asked as he grinned mischievously.

            “Y…Yes, milord,” Harry sighed, knowing that he had no place in denying.

            “What’s the matter, Liat?” Voldemort asked as he lifted Harry’s skirt, revealing the boy’s pussy and flicked his finger at the clit. “You don’t seem too into it.”

            _No shit, Sherlock,_ Harry thought as he bit his lip at the flick.

            “Then,” Voldemort pulled him down the hallway into what looked like the study room and waved his wand to close and lock the door, putting silencing charms about it, “lemme help you get into it. Sit on the desk and spread your legs for me.”

            Harry moved reluctantly onto the desk and lifted the skirt of his nightie fully, baring the pussy for all to see, looking away, not wanting to face the man.

            “If you like pussies so much, why don’t you just kidnap some girl and fuck her, or look for a real female slave instead?”

            “I did try a few times when I was out, but they can never compare with the one that you display in front of me,” Voldemort said as he gently slapped Harry’s thighs to coax him to open his legs wider. “Besides, what can be kinkier,” he leaned down and teased the clit with the tip of his tongue while his hands rested gently on his inner thighs, “than fucking a pussy boy who is pregnant and ultra sensitive to every touch I make?”

            “You…You mother fucker!” Harry cursed, biting back a moan as he was already starting to drip.

            “Now that you say it, I _am_ , am I not?” Voldemort laughed before he peppered kisses on the clit and on the folds of the boy’s pussy.

            As Harry covered his face, writhing and bucking under Voldemort’s talented mouth, the older man kissed the pussy some more before taking the swollen clit into his lips, sucking at them. Harry was unable to contain the yelp of pleasure that escaped from his lips as Voldemort slowly inches his tongue into his pussy, tongue-fucking him in a slow and steady rhythm, feeling himself almost coming to the edge of sanity. His mind was telling him to shut this all out, to ignore everything that had been bombarded over his body, but his body was begging Voldemort’s tongue to move faster, deeper and harder. He really hated himself right now for allowing hormones to take over his rationale.

            “Mmm…Going to come, aren’t we?” Voldemort asked before going in as deep as he could, tongue-fucking him a little harder.

            Harry let out a wail as he came, his body shivering and shaking, while Voldemort swallowed every drop as he diddled the clit to milk him out more, making the boy jerk and buck.

            “Oh god! Milord, please!” Harry begged, his whole body being oversensitive. “Stop, stop, STOP!!”

            “Mmm…Delicious as expected,” Voldemort licked him clean and looked up at the boy. “You came just by being tongue-fucked alone. You’re really enjoying it, aren’t you?”

            Harry didn’t reply, not sure whether it was from defiance or from the fact that he was panting like he just run a 10-mile marathon.

            “Come on now, Liat. Don’t go enjoying it all on your own now. My cock needs attention to. And I want you to do it while stroking yourself again. I want to see you come from sucking me.”

            Despite Harry’s shaky knees, the older man made him kneel on the floor as he took off his pants. Taking hold of the man meat, Harry tentatively licked the tip, making Voldemort hiss with delight, though in all truth, Harry wished it to be Severus’ cock that he was sucking. Harry took the head in his mouth, sucking lightly before pulling off like he was trained to. His other hand was busy working his own vagina as instructed by Voldemort, wincing as he felt Voldemort’s hand reaching down to tweak his nipples. Biting back a moan, he took Voldemort’s cock back in his mouth. He blushed as he started to finger his clit. It felt strange to him, touching something that wasn’t supposed to be there, that wasn’t supposed to belong to him, but in another way, it felt rather good, almost so much better than it felt stroking his cock. The pleasure was deep inside, burning within his crotch, unlike the feel of pumping a cock that felt rather external. It felt wrong, but at the same time so right.

            He really hated himself right now.

            Voldemort was starting to moan and pant from Harry giving him head, ordering the boy to take more and diddle himself faster. He could tell that the boy was about to come before him as he ran his hair along the boy’s dark ebony tresses, chuckling darkly at the way Harry wanted to hold back in fear of Voldemort’s wrath if he ever capped off before him.

            “C’mon, boy, you can do better than that. I thought I told you to come while you suck me. I want to feel your voice on my cock as you come from sucking me.”

            Harry whimpered, but one last flick of that bud sent him over the edge. Severus moaned and screamed and whined all through his orgasm, unable t contain himself. The vibration from Harry’s voice on his cock was giving him a sensual jolt in his system, not to mention the sexy way Harry writhed and screamed his orgasm with his dick still in his mouth. He wanted to pull out, remembering that he made a deal with Harry not to come in his mouth, but Harry was the one to pull back, panting and gulping for air, his body trembling with the force as the older man finally came, covering the boy’s face and nightie with his warm seed.

            “M…Milord…You promised…” Harry whined, his hand weakly stroking the cock still to milk him out some more like he was trained to.

            “Yes, I know that, Liat,” Voldemort growled, “but I never gave permission for you to pull out without my orders.”

            “I…I didn’t mean…I…” Harry wanted to cower away from him, trying to avoid punishment but he couldn’t get up thanks to the double orgasm he had just now. Voldemort smirked at that sight and waved a cleaning spell over Harry before carrying the boy bridal style.

            “Too much to handle, eh? Seems like you really enjoyed yourself a little. But you’re not off the hook yet. I’m gonna punish you for pulling out without my permission.”

            Harry definitely knew what he meant as Voldemort carried him upstairs to the master bedroom of the manor.


	70. Chapter 70

            Draco stretched and cricked his neck as he finished his essay on Herbology. Being that now he was no longer under his father’s rule of thumb, he had decided to choose his own career path instead of the Auror career he had initially chosen for the sake of the family. He informed Severus of his desire to switch his aspirations from being Auror to Herbologist and had his syllabus rearranged accordingly. The subjects he would need to major in the career path of a Herbologist increased a little bit, but the rest of the subjects that were unnecessary were exempted from his curricular, so it was a fair trade.

            As he waited for Remus to return from getting another one of his craving snacks, he looked out the window and enjoyed the night view, his left hand supporting his back and his right hand caressing gently at his belly. He smiled down at his babies that resided quietly inside, waiting for their time to come out. Thankfully, they were behaving nicely and not making his spleen into a Quidditch match or using his bladder their trampoline. Probably all the long hours sitting down cramming on books must’ve bored the twins to death.

            “Mmm, I wonder if your Daddy has gotten the double-fudged marshmallows and s’moores I asked,” Draco said more to the twins than to himself. “If he couldn’t find any, maybe some pickles and ice cream would suffice…What the…?”

            Out at the distance near the backyard, Draco spotted a girl standing in front of the back porch. She was quite tall and lithe, and under the moonlight, his hair was rich in the colour of the blackest night. From the looks of her height, he guessed that she probably was a little bit older than himself, probably about the same age as Cedric Diggory. He then saw her made a step forward and suddenly found her just right in front of his face, and it took a wand and a spell from her to mute his voice before he could scream for help to make him realize that this girl had just apparated into his room.

            The girl came up to him a little tentatively, laying a finger on his lips. Draco’s first instinct was to slap her hand away, but her bright, stunning pair of green orbs and the safety of his babies made him hold back, though he still tried to yell his lungs out to see if that would break the spell she put him on.

            “Be quiet, Malfoy. Promise me you won’t yell when I release you from the spell.”

            Her voice was so stunningly mature and deep, but with the twins at stake, he was willing to do anything. He nodded and the girl chanted an anti-spell, releasing Draco from her Silencing spell and the blonde quickly found his voice back again.

            “Who…Who are you…?” Draco asked, cowering from the girl until his back was against the bed post.

            “It is not important,” the girl said as she brushed aside a fringe from her forehead. “I am here to bring you news.”

            “What news?”

            “You and your friends have been trying to rescue this Potter friend of yours and bring him back together with your godfather Severus, are you not?”

            “Um…yeah, you’re right on that. How do you know?” Draco asked, surprised at how she, of all the strange people, would know about him and the Dumbledore’s Army’s agenda.

            “I have my sources,” the girl replied briefly, and then said, “Do you want to know the reason why you’re not going anywhere?”

            “Obviously it’s because those stuck-up Ministry doesn’t really give a hoot about anything that does not fit into their money pockets, that’s why. I mean, you would think that you’d actually show a little compassion, given the circumstances and all, not to mention the depth of Uncle Sev’s relationship to Harry! But _no_ , not them! They had to be, oh so prejudicial about all this just because…”

            “What if I tell you that this goes beyond what you would expect this to be?”

            “Wh…What?” Draco widened his eyes in shock.

            “These killings, they are not what you think is going on. They are not even as simple as that. You all were never really under the threat of a lone mass murderer who is out for blood just because he didn’t like Halflings and Mudbloods. Not at all. You are all fooled by the surface. This case goes higher, way higher than you can imagine, probably all the way up high to people who run this wizarding world.”

            “Wait just a cotton-pickin’ minute here!” Draco stopped the girl from carrying on her ramblings. “You’re telling me that this Tom Riddle guy, this Voldemort is working for the Ministry?”

            “Exactly.”

            “Sorry to burst your bubble here, but I find this very hard to believe. The Ministry is the one behind the Potter genocide and the one behind all the past killings back then before Harry’s parents’ death? You gotta be kidding me!”

            “Suit yourself,” the girl said as she took a step back towards the window. “I’m just here to inform you about this. You can tell your friends about this if you wish to.”

            Before the girl could apparate away, Draco quickly reached over and grabbed her sleeve, making her jump and blush a little, looking as if she was a little uncomfortable or maybe even surprised with this close contact.

            “Why?” Draco asked. “Why are you telling me all this?”

            The girl stared at him with her bright green eyes the colour of green sapphires for a while, then said, “Because I care. And I thought this is the right thing to do. I can no longer stand by and watch this injustice unfold on all of you, pureblood or not, and this concerns all of you, because sooner or later it will end in blood. I don’t want to keep any one of you in the dark any longer, Malfoy, not with what I know.”

            “How do you know my name?”

            “I know everything there is to know about everyone in the wizarding world, that’s all I can say. Can I go now?”

            “Please, at least tell me your name!” Draco begged as he tugged at her sleeve even more.

            After another momentary silence, she tugged her sleeve free, kissed him lightly on the forehead in a sad, sympathetic fashion and replied very quietly.

            “Lillian. Lillian Rome.”

            So saying, she apparated out of Draco’s room and out into the streets, leaving Draco to his thoughts as he barely registered Remus finally coming in with his goodies.

\--:--

            “Do you want me, Malfoy?”

            Lucius turned around from the mirror as he dried himself from his bath and smirked deviously. Harry was there promptly as requested when Lucius made the firecall to Voldemort to tell that the coast was clear and that the Aurors and people from the Department of Mysteries were gone after a fruitless search, in which Voldemort announced to the blonde that he will stay in low profile in the Riddle Manor until the whole incident blows over and that he would reward his unfailing loyalty by having his way with Harry again. Harry wasn’t too happy to serve him again, but he knew he had no say in this unless he wanted to get another severe punishment that would threaten his child’s life. Lucius, after casting a drying spell and draped on his night robe, came close to Harry, shut the door and caressed the boy’s hips.

            “Oh yes, my dear boy,” Lucius whispered as he leaned in to kiss him. “I definitely want you very badly, my lovely little slave.”

            “I’m not yours, and neither am I Voldemort’s. Don’t get ahead on yourself.”

            “My, my, aren’t you a feisty little one tonight?” Lucius grinned as he kissed him passionately, carrying Harry’s legs to wrap it around his waist, then carried him all the way to the bed, magicking all their clothes away. Once the clothes were done with, Harry started rubbing himself on Sirius, biting back a moan.

            “Eager, aren’t we there, boy?” Lucius asked, reaching down and started rubbing Harry’s clit to prepare him.

            “Just fuck me and get it over and done with, Malfoy.”

            “Yes, I can see you’re very well ready now.”

            So saying, Lucius spread the wetness around Harry’s pussy before lubricating himself with it, teasing the clit with the tip of his cock. He grinned as he felt Harry whimper from the contact, knowing that even though the boy’s mind was resisting the temptation, his body was begging for him to just stick it in. With a dark chuckle, he slid in easily all the way to the hilt, making the boy scream.

            “Touch yourself there, boy,” Lucius ordered as he took Harry’s hand and made him tease himself, thrusting him deep and hard. “I want to feel your pussy tighten as you make yourself come for me.”

            “N…No…” Harry begged. “N…Not so hard…S…Slower…”

            “Why? Because you’re carrying Snivellus’ flesh and blood?” Lucius grinned as he kissed along Harry’s neck, leaving hickies everywhere.

            “P…Please…Please…Not so hard…”

            “No can do, boy,” Lucius said as he pushed it a little deeper, hitting the G-spot to tease him. “You enjoy me fucking you hard. It feels good, doesn’t it?”

            “N…No…That’s n…not true…!!”

            “OK, you asked for it.”

            So saying, Lucius moved harder and deeper, tweaking his nipples as he aimed for the G-spot over n over again, making the boy twist his body in pleasure despite himself. After fucking in that position for a while, Lucius flipped him and made him go on all fours before re-entering him, aiming for the spot as quickly and precise as he did. Harry gripped at the bed sheets, screaming as his body willed him to do, unable to hold back that pitch of pleasure escaping from his lips as he was literally pounded like a dog. Lucius thrust even harder and deeper into him, assaulting the spot as he reached over to nibble Harry’s ear, feeling himself getting close.

            “Mmh, yes…” Lucius moaned as he quickened his pace, holding onto the boy’s hips tight. “I want to bath your insides with my seed, but sadly in your condition, Master Riddle requested that I didn’t. Oh gods, so tight…”

            “N…No, don’t come inside me, please…!!” Harry continued to tease himself as requested by the older blonde. “Anything but that…!”

            “Come for me. Scream my name as you cover me with your pussy juice, boy.”

            That was the last thing Harry wanted to do, but he did let out a scream anyway as he came, his vagina contracted around him tight. In fact, the vagina contracted so hard that Lucius was unable to hold it. Quickly the older blonde pulled out and thrust between Harry’s butt-cheeks, coming all over his back. When Harry thought he was over as he calmed down from the tremors, he was jolted awake by Lucius poking his ass with his rod.

            “I am nowhere near done yet, boy. I’ve been holding out for too long to last only one round. C’mere and let me fuck your ass, boy.”

            Without warning, Lucius slicked Harry’s hole with both their come and slid in slowly with one thrust. Harry tensed a little, closing his eyes tight, before letting out a calming breath to help him adjust himself. Once the blonde’s rod was all the way in, he started moving in and out, each thrust bringing him closer to the prostate, taking both Harry’s wrists and pulled him back a little as he thrusts deeper, hitting the prostate just right and it wasn’t long before he made the boy start screaming in pleasure again.

            “Yes, yes, yes!” Lucius growled, assaulting the prostate harder, making Harry involuntarily see stars and his ass clench. “I’m going to make you come so hard you’ll lose your mind, and you’re gonna have to come by my cock alone.”

            Lucius kept on fucking him in that position for a while, feeling the ass clench pleasurably around his cock and the boy’s body tremble, signifying that he desperately wanted to come. Chuckling deviously, he picked Harry up until he was straddling his hips and leaning his back against his front, and while he still fucked him, his hand snaked down to rub Harry’s clit.

            That literally done him in as his body shook and jerked as he came, squirting out stream after stream, while Lucius felt the ass clenching him so hard, he barely could pull out before he put his throbbing cock between Harry’s legs, thrusting until he came, his hand continued to rub Harry some more, maximizing his pleasure. Harry couldn’t believe he could come this long and this much, and frankly by the time Lucius was done coming between his legs, he had lost count. Feeling the older man’s hold releasing him, Harry fell to the bed, trying not to squash his belly. Lucius joined beside him, spooning him.

            “Well, you were amazing as usual.”

            “Are we done here?” Harry panted, trying to get his breathing right and fighting the urge to elbow Lucius away. “Can I go back to your dear ol’ Master Riddle now?”

            “Not quite yet, boy,” Lucius grinned as he held onto Harry a little tighter. “You may have made me come twice in a row, but you know I have been holding out for too long, just as I said. Besides, Master Riddle promised that I could have you for the whole day whenever I asked. Didn’t he tell you that?”

            Harry bit his lip and held back a sob, cursing Voldemort inwardly for this.

\--:--

            “Say that again?”

            The Old Married Couple were in Draco’s room updating him on the progress of Dumbledore’s Army, which was, as expected, still not going anywhere. Remus has yet to return from his meeting at the Order at Severus’ home, so after a brief meeting between the DA members, Hermione and Ron decided to keep Draco company until the half-wolf returned. When Hermione started mentioning about the search party the Aurors and the members of the Department of Mysteries did that turned out fruitless, Draco thought it would be better to break the news about his mysterious meeting with Lillian Rome to them. After all, he was more or less a part of the Dumbledore’s Army and they have the right to know about any information he could provide that might help out in anyway. Obviously, he had caught them off-guard by that news, judging by their surprised faces.

            “Are you running a fever? Should I call Mrs. Sinistra?” Ron asked, feeling the blonde’s forehead, in which the latter slapped it away.

            “I am not sick! This is real, guys! She actually came in through the back porch, apparated into my room and told me that there is a possibility of the Ministry being in cahoots with Voldemort on all the past murders, including Harry’s parents and the current Potter genocide! Could you believe that? She is implying that it was all the Ministry’s plan, like a big scale conspiracy! You have to warn Uncle Sev and the Order of the Phoenix about this!”

            “And what was his name again?” Hermione asked.

            “Lillian Rome, I guess.”

            The Old Married Couple looked at each other with worried eyes. They were acting really weird and Draco was definitely curious about the sudden change of their attitude.

            “Uh, Drake, are you sure she said her name was Lillian Rome?” Ron asked, scratching his chin uneasily.

            “Duh! Of course I’m sure!” Draco replied exasperatedly. “I’m not dreaming this and I’m not making this up, and it wasn’t my mood swings making me see things either! What’s wrong with you? You act like as if I just announced that Dumbledore has just keeled over and kicked the bucket.”

            “It’s just that…well, it’s quite impossible that she’s Lillian Rome. I mean she could be someone posing as Lillian…” Hermione seemed as if she was hiding something.

            “Why? Why is it impossible? You tell me!” Draco was beginning to feel really annoyed by all this mystery hesitation.

            “She’s dead, Drake,” Hermione finally blurted out. “Lillian Rome died a long time ago. She and her family were mutilated beyond recognition and there was almost nothing left of her to be buried with. She was Voldemort’s first real victim.”

            “What…?”


	71. Chapter 71

            Harry woke up with a sinking feeling today. Voldemort was nowhere in sight, probably out there doing what he does best, but the sinking feeling would not go away. In fact, he had been under captivity long enough to have gone past the morning sickness phase and should be starting to crave weird food by now, but the tug at his heartstrings and the lead in his gut was killing his appetite. He knew he should be happy that his current increase in size of his baby bump was a sign that the child he and Severus created was still alive and well, but he couldn’t bring himself to rise to the occasion. He didn’t know why or what this feeling was, but he knew that as soon as Voldemort comes home from goodness knows where and after today, he would never be the same again.

            “I’m home, Liat.”

            Harry didn’t reply, staying in his room, salvaging whatever last defiance he had left. He could hear Wormtail coming up to him to help him take his robe and whatnot, and in minutes, Voldemort’s footsteps closed in to the room until the man made his presence known to him.

            “Hello there, my pet. How was your day?” Voldemort said as he came to the boy. “Did you miss me?”

            “Not really,” Harry looked away, hugging his knees, the sinking feeling getting worse.

            “Are you mad at me for leaving you alone here? My bad. I was busy doing my thing.”

            “Call it whatever you want. It’s still murder.”

            “Well, aren’t we waking up at the wrong side of the bed today?” Voldemort raised a brow and rubbed his face against Harry’s like a cat. “Maybe this might make you feel a little better.”

            So saying, the older man reached down with his hand under Harry’s nightie and started teasing his clit hard, making the boy squirm.

            “No, please, don’t…” Harry tried to push Voldemort’s hand away even though he knew it was in vain. “I don’t want it…”

            “Oh yes, you do, Liat,” Voldemort murred as he almost ripped the nightie off the boy before putting his fingers on the clit, rubbing it vigorously. “You want me to make love to you, fuck you right into the mattress until you lose your mind.”

            “Oh god…! Stop…!! I’m g…gonna come…!!” Harry twisted on the bed, trying to resist but his body made him open his legs wide like a two knut whore.

            “Come, let yourself loose. This won’t be your last orgasm, I promise you that.”

            With that, Voldemort rubbed even harder, one of the fingers occasionally thrusting into his pussy. Almost immediately, Harry’s eyes rolled back in his head as his pussy squeezed around Voldemort’s finger before letting out a stream. The older man rubbed some more to milk him out before licking it off his hand.

            “Mmm, such an intoxicating taste. Perhaps we should try something new today, and your body is perfect for it.”

            “W…What…do you want…to do with me…?” Harry panted, his body twitched a little from the lingering tremors.

            “I have got just the thing for this occasion,” Voldemort said as he accio-ed a brown paper bag that he had brought along into the room. Holding the boy in place with one hand, he dug through the bag to reveal a rather big-sized anal dildo. Harry blinked in confusion before he widened his eyes in shock at this.

            “Wh…Why d…do you have that? What d…do you want to do with it…?”

            “I got it after my kill. It is one of the trophies I’ve collected from my victim I just mutilated. Apparently he is rather fond of bodily exploration and had numerous of these, but this one is the one that struck my fancy. Better yet, see?”

            Voldemort whispered a spell and the dildo came alive, making a thrusting motion, making the boy jump.

            “N…No! I don’t want this in me! Keep it away from me!”

            “Oh? Are you sure you don’t want it?” Voldemort grinned as his one hand sneaked down to massage the sensitive clit while the other sneaked at the other side and teased the hole with the tip of the toy.

            “Yes…No, I mean…I don’t want it…!” Harry breathed, blushing a deep red as his body was reignited again despite himself.

            “Oh, I assure you, you most certainly will want it.”

            With that, he laid the boy down before using Harry’s pussy juice and spread it around his hole, teasing it occasionally. He chuckled as he saw Harry tried in vain to portray his defiance, gripping the sheets as he twisted his head away while he whispered a lube spell on both Harry’s ass and his fingers before slowly inching in two at once. Harry whined, cursing his body for making him realize how he missed those sensual touches and reacting to touches from people he shouldn’t be engaging. Voldemort, after thrusting some, entered a third finger, scissoring him and finger-fucked him, barely brushing against the prostate, preparing him for what’s to come, sending the boy arching and whining, tears of involuntary lust and self-loathing clung at his lashes.

            “My, my, we really are raunchy today, aren’t we?” Voldemort chuckled as he lubed up the dildo with Harry’s pussy juice and a lube spell for good measure, then slowly inches the dildo into Harry’s ass, making the boy gasp. “Rub yourself, boy. Rub it good.”

            Waiting for Harry to obey his orders, he lubed his cock up quickly, then entered him in one swift thrust. Once he felt himself fully immersed inside the boy, he whispered the spell to make the dildo thrust and he himself matched its thrusts, chuckling in malicious delight as he watched Harry throw his head back in a wordless cry, his body wrapped around Voldemort almost instinctively.

            “Ooh, yes, feels good, doesn’t it? Mmh, I can feel the dildo’s vibration as well. So good…!”

            Voldemort timed his thrusts right along with the dildo, making the boy almost scream from the pleasure. Harry would’ve outright begged him to go harder if he were to be fucked like this by Severus, but he knew he would betray Severus by wanting another man to pleasure him. His body told him that just a bit more and he would come, but he bit his lip hard until it was in the verge of bleeding to keep himself from saying so, while all the while Voldemort kept increasing the pace of the toy and he himself matched its pace, making it very hard for him to hold back his wanton voice.

            “Yes, yes, come for me. Shower my cock with your juice, Liat.”

            Harry could no longer hold back. He had to let the words out or his heart would probably burst out of his chest and kill him.

            “Yes, god, oh…Oh…OHH…!!! MILORD!!”

            Harry’s body went into hyperdrive as he came. He came longer and fast then he had ever, screaming out his pleasure. The muscles clamped down on him harder than he usually do, but Voldemort held back just to thrust into him so more, maximizing the boy’s pleasure to make him come some more. Almost immediately, Harry’s eyes rolled back in his head as he jerked, coming again. How, he did not care, just glad that he was, while Voldemort was loving the feeling of the boy’s muscles clamping down on him so intoxicatingly tight. He was almost close, all he need was another orgasm from Harry. Grinning, he thrust while rubbing at the clit at the same time, while the dildo was still fucking Harry’s ass. A few seconds later, Harry came again, though not as hard as before until he went down like a limp noodle, his body overridden with sensitivity. How could someone come that many times in a short amount of time was beyond him as he tried to stop Voldemort from giving him anymore but was unable to form the words thanks to his brain that had more or less turned to mush.

            Voldemort could see from Harry’s face that he was getting too sensitive, but he felt the clench all the same from Harry’s incoherent cry. Quickly he pulled out and came all over Harry’s body, groaning his slave name in pleasure. Harry laid on the bed, his eyes closed just trying to get his breath back. Then he let out a cry, remembering that the toy was still deep in his ass, in which Voldemort whispered a spell to make the dildo stop before pulling it out of him.

            “Mmm…Someone’s being a contented little kitty cat, aren’t we, Liat?” Voldemort nuzzled the boy, making him flinch.

            “That’s all…in your head…” Harry panted. “I am human…not a cat…”

            “Mmhmm…Who’s the one who just let out such a nice meow when he came, huh?” Voldemort grinned, his hands reach over to tease Harry’s nipples, his pleasure obviously not satiated enough yet, which was evident by the rock-hard cock pressed against the boy’s thigh.

            “P…Please…No more…Milord, I beg you…”

            “That’s not what I heard,” Voldemort reached down a hand to stroke the soaked clit, “especially with that loud meow and my name being called.”

            “N…No…That’s not true…” Harry whined, the sensitivity going down and the clit becoming swollen again for need.

            “So…looks like our little kitty cat needs a little stroking, don’t you think?”

            “Nnh…No…Please, don’t…” Harry begged, but his body was making him let his legs fall open for more access.

            “Yes, my little kitty cat loves to be stroked, doesn’t he?” Voldemort rubbed a little harder.

            “Y…Yes, milord…” Harry replied, cursing himself for saying that and cursing himself for this need his body craved.

            “Does kitty cat want to be stroked some more?” Voldemort grinned, deliberately slowing down and made the boy whine.

            “Y…Yes…Please…H…Harder…”

            “Then purr for me, my little kitty cat.”

            “I…I said I am not a…cat…!”

            “Oh? Then how about mewing like you just did? Surely my little kitty cat can do that,” Voldemort whispered into his ear, nibbling it while drawing the circles around the clit continuously.

            “P…Please…Milord…Don’t…”

            Voldemort chuckled and started rubbing Harry vigorously, finger-fucking him at the same time, reaching deeper and deeper into his G-spot. Harry bucked against him, the need to come rising as the older man banged against the G-spot again and again, his thumb continue to rub the clit. Within moments, Harry’s words were drowned out as he came, his body jerking and shaking. Voldemort did some more to milk him out, making him come again, not as much juice, but still powerful. Feeling his muscles clamped at his hand, Voldemort knew he was ready again. He took himself out and lubricated it with his juice before sliding forcefully into him again.

            “Kitty cat wants some milk, doesn’t he?”

            “N…No…No, don’t…milord…my baby…”

            “You are such a hard bargainer.”

            Voldemort soon starts moving in and out again in a steady rhythm, aiming for the spot expertly as he knew where it was after countless times of fucking the boy. Turned on by the boy’s screams and moans that he had gradually let loose more, he moved even faster and harder, hitting the G-spot vigorously until he could feel the familiar clenching again.

            “Oh, god…!!” Harry grabbed the bed, feeling the orgasm building again. “Right there!”

            “Yes, yes, yes! God, you’re so tight!” Voldemort spread the boy’s legs a little wider for better angle and aimed the G-spot perfectly.

            Almost immediately Harry’s scream rang in the room, coming for the goodness-knows-how-many time. Voldemort commented at the nice sound he made and wanted to hear it again as he jabbed some more, hitting harder and deeper into the G-spot, but Harry begged for mercy, not sure if he were able to take anymore even though his legs were opening wider against his will.

            “God, how I wish I could come inside you,” Voldemort panted as he slowed down to a halt, not wanting his own orgasm to end this pleasurable feeling. “Maybe I should try coming into your ass.”

            “No, milord, please…!” Harry whined. “You p…promised you…won’t come inside me…!”

            “I don’t see why I can’t. I wouldn’t think that it would hurt your little spawn now that you don’t have a cock anymore. Besides, I’m sure you want to have that toy up your pussy this time, am I right?”

            “N…No…” Harry scowled, though his blush gave him away.

            “You can’t hide anything from me. I’ve fucked you long enough to know what makes you tick.”

            So saying, he picked up the toy n lubed it up well with Harry’s juice again before pushing it slowly at the same time together as he entered Harry’s ass, making the boy gasp both in pain and pleasure.

            “Oh yes, I’m going to make you go insane this time.

            Again, he whispered the spell for the toy to come to life and timed his thrusts along with it. Harry literally screamed this time without reserve. Gone was any sense of rational thought. Now he was just a ball of cold hard need. Voldemort shouted his lust as well as he pummeled into Harry’s ass, timing it together with the toy as the toy assaulted Harry’s G-spot just the way he liked it. Harry’s eyes crossed as he came for the umpteenth time, his back jerking and his and gripping the sheets until a loud ripping sound was made. Voldemort heard the tear and peered at the source of the sound.

            “Aha, my sheets ruined. I’m gonna have to punish you,” Voldemort said as he slowed down his thrust, making the toy stop as well.

            “No, please don’t…!” Harry begged in fear. “I can’t help it! I didn’t mean to…!”

            “Was it that good till you have to torture my sheets for it?” Voldemort grinned maliciously as he pulled Harry up by the hair, turned on by the way tears were running down the side of Harry’s jade-green eyes.

            “Please, milord…! I’m sorry…Please don’t hurt me…!!”

            “Well, you’re going to go that easy, aren’t you? Those were my best sheets. I’m gonna have to tie you up for this.”

            Without warning, Voldemort whispered a wandless spell and the bed posts at the head of the bed seemed to morph into long creepy vines that wrapped around the boy’s wrists, pulling his arms up above his head and bound him against the head of the bed. Watching the boy cry pools of tears, sobbing under the mercy of his binds as the dildo still lodged inside his pussy was turning the vulgar man on in more ways than one. Cupping the boy’s cheek, Voldemort licked the salty tears that flowed down before running his tongue along the bridge of the boy’s nose.

            “I didn’t mean to do it, milord…” Harry sobbed. “Please…don’t hurt my baby…You use my body all you want…Please…don’t punish my baby for it…”

            “On the contrary, my little Liat,” Voldemort said huskily as he restarted the toy before reentering his cock into the boy’s ass. “I will make you come again and again until you go insane and want no other cock but mine.”

            With that, he spelled back the toy into its previous speed and thrusts along with it, both the dick hitting the prostate and the toy hitting the spot at the same time. One thrust, two thrusts, and Harry’s body started jerking again, clamping down on a death grip on the toy and on Voldemort as he came. Voldemort made the poor boy come a few more times until the clamping was too much for him to hold back. He snapped and bathed Harry’s ass with his warm seed, jerking just as hard as Harry did as he filled the boy to the brim before finally collapsing beside him, panting breathlessly. The toys was still going and tried to spawn another orgasm but Harry’s spent body would not let him have it anymore. Coming down from his high, Voldemort whispered a spell to stop the toy, but kept it inside.

            “Mmh, you’re so sexy this way,” Voldemort flicked playfully at the clit, making the boy wince. “Gimme a few more minutes and a bit of a drink and we can carry on like this all night, my little Liat.”

            As Voldemort got off the bed and out of the room to get his drink, Harry’s sinking feeling finally gave him the closure that he could no longer returned to the life his beloved Severus had risked his life attaining for him.

            And he hated himself for it.


	72. Chapter 72

            “Good morning, Potter. Slept well?”

            Harry looked around in confusion. He remembered distinctively that he was sleeping in Voldemort’s arms after another night of having his pussy and ass ravished until he probably won’t be able to sit or walk properly for a week, but now suddenly he found himself lying on Draco’s old bed in his old room facing Lucius with no Wormtail in sight to bring him his usual breakfast. Harry cowered away a little, wary of the blonde’s motives.

            “What the…? Where am I…?”

            “Don’t worry, boy. You’re just in my son’s room, is all, although I must admit, you sleeping with your thumb in your mouth looks rather cute.”

            “Why am I here? Shouldn’t I be home waiting to be fucked by your Master Riddle?”

            “You were brought here by Master Riddle himself before he left to do his work. He requested that I entertain you for the time being since he pitied you being cooped up in the manor for so long, and also the fact that he has grown tired of your current attire and wished that I go shopping with you. All on me, of course, and he promised that I could have my way with you as well.”

            “And how exactly are you gonna take me out?” Harry raised a brow. “You do realize that you’re just letting people come to my rescue.”

            “Oh, don’t worry, we are not going to do our shopping at Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley. We’re going to Trinity Vane. It’s a place just like Hogsmeade, only it is accessible only to the elite members like me, and only a very selected few families of my status are able to have clearance. Things there are far more exquisite even than Knockturn Alley and sold to people with taste and with the money to burn, unlike Snivellus who would rather shop in thrift shops Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley seem to spawn everywhere. And don’t worry, I’ve got some Notice-Me-Not spells for extra protection.”

            Harry fought the urge to roll his eyes. Trust the cunning Lucius to think of everything. Tossing the boy one of Draco’s old clothes, Lucius jerked his head.

            “Shall we?”

            Whether Harry wanted or not, he had to comply as he changed into Draco’s clothes and was led by the older blonde to the carriage to take the rather long journey ride to the place Lucius spoke of. During the ride, Lucius had made a few advances, kissing and nipping him and feeling him up a few, but other than that, he had not gone anywhere further, claiming that he would reserve himself for later on after the shopping. Harry no longer dread the thought of being ravished later on because he knew it was inevitable, but he still didn’t like it, wishing to gods of all religion that something would just happen to make the older blonde drop dead right there and then and be the end of his misery.

            “Ah, here we are then.”

            Harry felt the carriage came to a halt and being nudged to get off it. As he did so, he looked around and saw that he was in a cleaner, more prim and proper commercial town than Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley. The streets were more paved, the shop houses were newer and more high-classed and the people who walked about looked like they seemed to be dressed to impressed. There were no common grocery stores like he usually saw in Hogsmeade or little roadside stalls that littered the corners of Diagon Alley, and there was definitely no sign of beggars and vagabonds like the ones in Knockturn Alley or any little ragamuffin children that occasionally show up to sell you their candy or flowers. Everything sold here was high-classed and dear beyond compare to any other shop, and this was definitely the kind of place Lucius’ kind would be hanging about.

            “Impressive, isn’t it?” Lucius asked, breaking Harry out of his reverie.

            “W…Whatever,” Harry looked away, feeling like a fool for giving in to the indulgence of sight.

            “Come along now. Let’s get started with your shopping.”

            Reluctantly taking the blonde’s hand, Harry was taken around to shop around Trinity Vane. Numerous vanity items were sold around there, and Harry knew that no matter how rich Severus was, he could never afford what Lucius was able to afford in this place. Lucius made a few stops to certain shops to purchase his own items, introducing Harry to everyone as his “niece”. Harry had realized that Lucius had to flash a holographic card at the owners whenever he come to purchase his goods and he would immediately get a discount on anything he bought, making him wonder just how powerful can this man be. When they were walking down the boutique alley, Harry found himself looking through the windows when he saw a women’s underwear store. He blushed as he saw a corset that was on display behind the window and his mind suddenly fluttered to how Severus would feel if he were to wear this for him. Lucius noticed this and grinned deviously at him.

            “Take a picture. It’ll last longer.”

            Harry broke out of his musing and backed away quickly, looking away defiantly.

            “Enjoying a little eye candy, I see?”

            “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Harry held his head high, denial written all over his reddish face.

            “Right…” Lucius smirked some more before he led the boy into a boutique specializing in selling teenage fashion, in which he was immediately approached by a tall, lanky woman.

            “Ah, if it isn’t Lord Malfoy~!” the woman spoke in a voice that reminded Harry of Umbridge. “To what do I owe the pleasure of serving you?”

            “Hello there, Jay, old friend,” Lucius said as he flashed his card at her. “How is the man of the house?”

            “Still living, unfortunately,” the woman called Jay laughed at her own joke. She noticed Harry beside him and asked, “Who is this beautiful little girl here?”

            “She’s my niece Liat whom I had the unfortunate luck to babysit. Her mother thought having her around me for a while would convince her to be a classy lady rather than a rowdy tomboy, as you see from her dressing.”

            Harry blinked a little in confusion. How was this blonde able to make up stories like this on the fly was beyond him.

            “Well, we’ll just have to get started on dressing her like a classy lady now, won’t we? That’s what my shop is for.”

            Soon, Harry was showed around the area, being brandished with clothes that range from those made with gold thread and sewn with green stones to those laced with diamonds and silver laces. Some were almost medieval, some were of exotic feel, like Egyptian and Arabic and others were modern-looking and almost close to Muggle fashion, but all of them had one thing in common: they were all bloody expensive. Even some of the headwear were ranging from 110 Galleons to 180 Galleons and above.

            After getting a few items to try on via recommendation from Jay, Lucius followed behind Harry to go to the changing room, but instead of waiting outside, he snuck up behind him and joined him into one of the cubicles.

            “Y…You’re supposed to be outside,” Harry muttered. “What would they think seeing you in the changing room with your ‘niece’?”

            “Why? Don’t you want to change for me?” Lucius asked in a devious tone.

            “Not in particular,” Harry replied, though he knew it wouldn’t convince him to get out anyway as he reluctantly undressed in front of Lucius and donned the clothes Jay gave him one by one, letting Lucius be the judge of it.

            “Mmm, Jay was right. The clothes do look good on you. Very elegant, with a hint of feminine on it.”

            “I’m not one of your cheap whores, Malfoy,” Harry muttered as he turned his back and began to undress.

            “True,” Lucius said as he reached over to hold him from the back. “But you are still a slave. Always has been, always will be.”

            Harry involuntarily let out a little moan and dropped the clothes he just undressed, revealing full rear nudity for Lucius to see.

            “Turned on, aren’t we?” Lucius’ whispered, his hands snaking down to his pussy to rub it. “You like doing it in public, don’t you?”

            “N…No, no…I d…don’t…please…” Harry bit his lip to catch a moan.

            “Are you sure? Then maybe I should just stop doing this then,” Lucius chuckled as he pinched and rubbed the clit, making the boy shiver.

            “P…Please…W…We c…can’t d…do it h…here…Th…They will know…”

            “I’ve cast a Silencing charm and a Blocking charm. They won’t be able to use this cubicle, but they won’t know we’re in here.”

            So saying, the blonde magicked the clothes away so that they’re hanging on the hook of the cubicle wall before he pushed Harry against the other side and massaged his clit, rubbing it hard while kissing him passionately. Harry was going crazy, trying to match the kisses as Lucius finger-fucked him and rubbed the swollen clit at the same time.

            “Come for me,” Lucius spoke between kisses. “Let me hear your first scream of pleasure.”

            Harry had to break away from the kiss as his first orgasm came on him, his legs buckled and would not hold him up. Lucius milked him some more as he supported him, before tasting the come on his fingers.

            “Mmm…” Lucius licked his lips. “Delicious as ever.”

            “J…Just fuck me and g…get it over with…” Harry groaned, panting and slightly dazed.

            “Oh yes, I will fuck you until you lose your mind.”

            So saying, Lucius picked Harry’s legs up and wrapped it around his waist before entering him and thrusting into him, moving faster and faster every minute, making the boy scream almost in approval. He aimed at the G-spot accurately, going as hard as his body could, ramming the poor boy against the wall. Harry lost himself momentarily to this passion, holding onto the blonde as his spot was rammed again and again. Lucius supported Harry’s weight with one hand while the other snaked down to tease the clit with the same force as his thrusts.

            “Ooh…I’m coming…I’M COMING…!!!” Harry screamed, his body shuddered as he came onto Lucius’ cock. “GOD, GOD!”

            “Mmh~!! Yes, yes, YES!! Come for me some more, boy~!” Lucius thrust harder onto the G-spot to milk him out some more. “YES! Lemme feel that pussy squeeze around me!”

            Harry’s eyes rolled back as he came again, longer and harder this time, making him pass out. The clench on his cock made Lucius snap. He almost couldn’t pull out from the tightness but he did, squirting his come all over Harry’s belly and thighs, then saw Harry passed out after coming down from his high and chuckled.

            “My, my, someone has been enjoying himself a little too much.”

            Harry’s head lulled onto Lucius’ shoulder. He groaned slightly as he started to come out of it. Lucius magicked the mess away and magicked their clothes back on as he set the boy down.

            “Can you still stand there, boy? Don’t go out on me now.”

            “Y…Yes. P…Please no more sex for today…I don’t know if I can take it…” Harry pleaded, barely standing up.

            “Oh, I’m sure you can still go a few more rounds later on,” Lucius grinned as he took the clothes Harry had just tried on. “You seem to enjoy it when Snivellus fucked you like rabbits.”

            “Stop calling him that,” Harry scowled. “He has a name, and I will not have you insulting him like this.”

            “You are under my command now, boy,” Lucius hissed as he grabbed the back of Harry’s head, tugging a handful of the boy’s hair. “You have no right at the moment to behave like you still live in that superficial love life you had with the man I had the disgusting luck to call a god-brother, so watch your tongue there!”

            “Y…Yes, sir…” Harry winced at the tug before looking down like the slave he should.

            “Shall we buy these then?” Lucius asked as he came out of the cubicle, the boy following behind him.

            “Whatever strikes your fancy…sir.”

            After selecting a few more other clothes and accessories to go with it, Lucius went to pay for them at the cashier. While he did so, Harry sneaked out of the shop to try his luck at escaping, but somehow despite his mind telling him to run, his body halted at the women’s underwear shop where he saw the corset earlier. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the corset put there in display along with pants, thigh-high red stockings and long red gloves on the mannequin. He knew he should be running, that he should be looking for a place to hide until he lost sight of Lucius before making his grand escape, but his body and heart told him that there was nowhere to go, nowhere to run and nowhere to hide, and that even if he did manage to escape, there was no way he could return to Severus and be back to the way it used to be with him because he had utterly and thoroughly betrayed both body, heart and soul to people other than his beloved. And worse, he could no longer be touched by only one man after his body had been forced to return to being satisfied by more than one, just like he used to when he was a slave.

            And it really, really hurts.

            Lucius, after paying for the clothes, noticed Harry gone and was cursing himself for letting his guard down, but just when he thought he had lost him, he saw the boy standing in front of the women’s underwear shop they had just passed by and caught him staring at the corset in display again. Fuming, he came up behind him and took him by the back of the neck.

            “And where do you think you’re going? Trying to escape, aren’t you?”

            “N…No…I’m not, I swear…” Harry whimpered, feeling the grip almost strangling him.

            “Looks like someone needs to be puni…” Lucius noticed the corset he was staring at and grinned deviously. “You know, all you have to do is ask.”

            “No, I wasn’t…” Harry flushed but was cut short by Lucius’ pull close to the latter’s chest.

            “You seemed to have developed a fetish for women’s clothes now, aren’t you? Come now, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. It shows that Master Riddle has trained you well.”

            “No, th-that’s not true!”

            “Oh, yes, it is. So you want me to go in there and buy it for you while you wait or you wanna come in with me?”

            “D…Don’t make me go in there…It’s embarrassing…” Harry begged.

            “Very well,” Lucius said as he handed the shopping bags to Harry. “Hold this and wait here. And if you try to run away again, I will punish you. You hear me?”

            Harry nodded and took the bags as Lucius went into the shop to get it. He was forced to stand near the display window so that Lucius could keep an eye on him while buying the corset. It felt weird for him—a little “girl” standing outside a women’s underwear shop holding shopping bags—and if it weren’t for the Notice-Me-Not spells cast on him and Lucius before they came here, he would’ve been subject to staring right now.

            “Smile!”

            Harry was caught off-guard as a bright flash shone at his face for a split second there. He was even more surprised that the person who made that flash was a girl dressed in rags, her worn-out scarf covering her mouth and nose holding a camera. She was wearing fingerless gloves and was tattered from head to toe, but her bright green eyes behind black fringes bore into his own green orbs.

            “Uh…ex…excuse me?” Harry blinked in confusion.

            “You got a pretty face there,” the girl said as she hid the camera into her robes and approached him. “I just had to capture the moment there. Now how’s about sparing a change for my services there, aye, pretty lady?”

            “Um, I’ve g…got nothing on me, I…” Harry didn’t know how to react at this forwardness.

            “Now don’t tell me a rich girl like you don’t have just a few Sickles for a poor little girl who just took your lovely picture now, do you? C’mon now…”

            “Who let you into the premises here, you little ragamuffin?”

            Harry gasped as he felt Lucius’ hand on his shoulder. The girl quickly cowered away from the blonde who looked at her venomously, as if his looks could kill a thousand deaths over.

            “She…She’s just asking a bit of payment for a picture of me she took…” Harry tried to explain but was cut off by Lucius’ fuming glare.

            “Picture?! Who gave you the right to take my niece’s picture?!” Lucius boomed. “Give me the camera!”

            “Hey, c’mon, it’s just a picture. A girl’s gotta earn her own keep now, innit?” the girl held out her hand. “That’ll be 12 Sickles, please.”

            “I’m not paying you a single Knut!” Lucius slapped the hand away and took out his wand. “ _Levicorpus_ _!_ ”

            Within seconds, the girl was dangled in the mid-air upside down and the contents of her robes fell out onto the paved ground, which included a money pouch, some miscellaneous trinkets and the camera. Releasing her from the spell, Lucius snatched the camera and threw it hard onto the ground, smashing it into pieces and stomping onto it for good measure. The girl yelled in shock and jumped on Lucius, attacking him.

            “Hey, hey, hey! What the hell?? That’s my livelihood you’re destroying here! How do you expect me to feed myself now?!”

            “I suggest you go back to whatever hole you crawled out from to do that, you worthless twat!” Lucius growled as he pushed her away. “Get outta my sight, unless you want to feel the wrath of an Unforgivable Curse!”

            The girl glared at him and spat at him before holding onto Harry with a solemn look, before leaning over to whisper something into his ear. Harry widened his eyes in shock at upon hearing it and was about to ask her what did she mean when Lucius grabbed her by the back of her collar to pull her away and kicked her ass, shoving her off to one of Trinity Vane’s law enforcers to be taken away.

            “What did she just said to you there, boy?” Lucius demanded as he patted the dust off from touching the girl.

            “Umm, n…nothing…” Harry replied quickly. “She was…just begging me to pay her, is all.”

            “Honestly, security here is getting more and more lax to allow people like her to come into this exclusive district. If she goes around displaying and selling your picture, Master Riddle and I will be ruined,” Lucius grumbled and handed his purchase to Harry. “Once Master Riddle is done with his mission, we won’t be seeing this kind of people anymore. Come along now, boy. We’ve still got some shopping to do.”

            “Y…Yes, sir…” Harry nodded as he followed quietly behind the blonde, the real words the girl just said to him ringing in his mind over and over again:

            _Help is on the way, Harry. Just hold on…_


	73. Chapter 73

            Draco couldn’t wrap his mind around it. Ever since he had that mystery visit from the supposedly dead girl who called herself Lillian Rome, her claims about Voldemort being part of the Ministry’s conspiracy was really boggling him. Hermione had urged him not to tell Remus about this because she was afraid it might start off something fierce and that this girl cannot be trusted on the fly just like that, being that the possibility of this being a false alarm or that she could be one of Voldemort’s people was high. Draco promised to keep his mouth sealed till Hermione looked up on this matter and was quite glad that he didn’t tell Remus about it in the first place when Lillian came over the first time.

            But it still bothered him to no end that this whole thing was a huge conspiracy and that the people the wizarding world trusted to run it were behind the biggest massacre history had ever known.

            While he contemplated on it, a tapping was heard at his window. He looked over to investigate and saw that it was a jet-black owl with silver eyes outside the window sill holding a letter in its beak. Surprised, he let it in and it immediately perched onto his table, dropping the letter onto it before letting out a gentle hoot, pecking and nibbling at the chicken stew lunch Draco didn’t finish to claim his own reward for bringing in the letter. The blonde chuckled at the owl’s headstrong antics and checked the letter warily, making sure it wasn’t hexed or that it wasn’t a Howler or something before opening to read it.

* * *

 

_Meet me at Three Broomsticks. Come alone and do not tell anyone._

_Lillian Rome_

_P/S: Put the pendant on before you leave. It will keep you safe._

* * *

 

            Draco blinked in confusion. Meet out? At Three Broomsticks? Alone? But surely he couldn’t go out alone like this. He was still in hiding from the Ministry for carrying a forbidden child, and not to mention he was in hiding from his father who would threaten to abort his babies as soon as he set eyes on him. What was she thinking trying to ask him out and risk the safety of his life and the lives of the twins he was carrying?

            But then his eyes scanned through the postscript note at the bottom, he checked the envelope and sure enough there was a pendant inside there shaped like a teardrop the colour of sunset. He examined it from top to bottom and did not see any foul play, and knowing that she could apparate into someone’s room without even alerting the household and possibly have cheated death, it wouldn’t hurt to trust her. Besides, he needed answers to what was boggling his mind and he needed them quick. He was lucky that Remus was out again on another Order meeting or he would’ve been there with him, seeing the letter and finding out about his encounter with her and, as usual, become the worried wart he always was, urging him not to go and he would be left in the dark again till goodness knows when.

            Putting on his robe and putting the pendant on, he made sure that no one saw him leave before sneaking out and hauled a cab to take him to Kingscross Station, remembering to pay the cab driver Muggle money instead of wizard money before taking Hogwarts Express all the way to the station and took a public carriage to ride to Hogsmeade.

            In his haste, he had forgotten to hide away the letter.

\--:--

            “I was wondering when you were gonna show up.”

            Draco hesitated before he sat down face to face with Lillian. She was dressed like a common prostitute with the bling and the revealing dress-up, draped in an expensive almost transparent robe made out of fine material and had her hair seductively combed to one side in a peek-a-boo hairstyle, covering half of her face, but her bright green eyes was the one that stood out the most, and what made Draco recognize her.

            “I see the pendant had worked its magic,” Lillian said as she gestured at the pendant that dangled at his neck.

            “What is this, anyway?” Draco asked, fingering the pendant.

            “It’s something like a Notice-Me-Not gadget, since I can’t cast it on you personally. Once you put it on, you will automatically blend in, and your appearance, in the eyes of others, will look like what they think you might look like, especially when you’re pregnant like this, I’m sure the first thing Muggles would see you as is an expecting mother. Just an example, so to speak. Right now, to me, you look like this girl I knew…ah, yes, Fleur Delacour. A _pregnant_ Fleur Delacour.”

            “You remind me of Hermione somehow,” Draco chuckled. “She’s just about as smart as you are, and really talented with magic, potions and with conjuring stuff up.”

            “Naw, I might probably be better at Charms and Potions than your friend Granger but…” Lillian smiled sadly, a small blush across her cheek. “I don’t think I’m that much of a good deal. I…couldn’t protect my family.”

            “So you sell sex?” Draco gestured at her getup.

            “Not really,” Lillian shrugged. “Just something for me to blend in, since I can no longer be seen in public.”

            “What do you mean by that? My friends looked at me like I was a crazy buffoon when I told them about our meeting at my home the other day, and they told me not to tell anyone else coz they don’t trust you, though I think they still don’t believe me. I was about to ask you to come with me so that I can prove to my friends that my encounter with you was real.”

            “You should know by now that it is not possible for me.”

            Draco stared at Lillian for a long while before he finally blurted out, “What they said was true, wasn’t it? You’re already dead and you’re a ghost.”

            “I…I was dead. Well, sort of,” Lillian muttered uneasily.

            “What do you mean, sort of?”

            “I…Well, I was dead a few years back by some accident. Then…I was revived again.”

            “It wasn’t an accident,” Draco folded his arms across his chest, which wasn’t much room thanks to his bulging belly. “Hermione told me about you. You and your family were murdered by Tom Marvolo Riddle a.k.a. Voldemort because you were a Muggle-born. I don’t call that an ‘accident’.”

            “Well, did that Know-It-All also tell you that because of Riddle, I could no longer show my face in public for fear of causing an uproar and drawing attention to that monster to kill me again, that I could no longer sleep peacefully because all I could ever dream of were nightmares of me watching him cutting my parents up slowly, bit by bit until they died by just the pain alone before he raped and sodomized me to death, that my body was so mangled and mutilated beyond repair that no one could tell which body part belonged to whom and I had to be cremated together with my parents, our ashes mixed together and that I will forever feel their essence, their soul and their pain in my skin, in my blood, in my flesh and in my bones? Don’t act as if you understand me, Malfoy, because you don’t.”

            Draco bit his lip, seeing Lillian looking at him grudgingly, like he had just uttered something that tainted her family name. He looked down at the pendant and fingered it quietly.

            “Sorry,” Lillian sighed and took a sip of her coffee, giving a guy who was eyeing at her lecherously a Don’t-even-think-about-it look. “I just…I’m just trying to adjust to the fact that of all the people that were brought to life, I was the only one.”

            “Brought back to life?” Draco blinked, looking up at him. “What do you mean…?”

            “I don’t know,” Lillian shook her head. “One moment I remember screaming until I couldn’t scream anymore when that…that monster violated me and then…I found myself on a dusty old rickety bed inside the Shrieking Shack with only a bed sheet as my means of clothing and no one else around but me. I have no idea why, when and how I was alive…but I was, and here I am now, hiding in plain sight, trying to avoid being found by that monster and find out what the hell everything is going here.”

            “I guess we’ll figure that out as we go along. I need some answers, Lillian. Why did you tell me that…” Draco looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping before continuing quietly, “that these killings, including yours, had to do with the Ministry?”

            “Because this is true. I have been around for a long while and have done a bit of a personal research on my own to know that this Riddle guy, this Voldemort you guys seemed to be raving about, had always been a pawn for the Ministry to vindicate purebloods like you and eradicate people like me. It had always been their doing and the people here,” Lillian flailed her arms at her surroundings, “are just too blind to see that.”

            “OK…” Draco found it a little hard to digest all this information. “Let’s say I humour your little paranoid conspiracy theory of yours, why do you think they want to do that? Why go through all the trouble of having Voldemort as their assassin? Why did they even bother? I mean, they are the Ministry; they can just put out some sort of decree to wipe out the entire nations of non-pureblood people and make a whole Garden of Eden out of this place or something instead of sending a small fry to do a big-scale job like this.”

            “That’s because they think they are better than anyone else. They think that by doing this, they are a lot smarter than the Muggles who had put a black mark in human history through the Holocaust and the Klu Klux Klan and whatnot, but they don’t realize that they were doing the exact same thing the Muggles did to their own people, that they are just lying to themselves about committing the exact same atrocities as the Muggles did.”

            “How do you know all this?” Draco leaned towards her. “How are you able to find out all this and piece it all together if you’re in hiding like this?”

            “I can’t tell you more,” Lillian shook her head. “I don’t have enough evidence to back up what I’m telling you right now, but I assure you it is true. And truthfully, this is not the real reason I asked you out.”

            “What? What are you talking about?”

            Lillian quietly fished out a small glass vial out of her cleavage and set in on Draco’s hand, making him take it. Draco looked at the vial and recognized it as one of the vials he saw in Albus’ office at one time when he was called in for causing trouble at school, among a dozen more vials that situated near the Pensieve everyone rumoured the old Headmaster had.

            “Is…Is this…?” Draco wasn’t sure she was thinking what he was thinking, but he had to ask anyway, in which Lillian nodded.

            “Show this to the Order,” Lillian said. “Better yet, show this to Prof. Snape. He’s gonna need this. Goodbye.”

            “Wait!” Draco quickly took her wrist. “When will I see you again? When will you reveal everything?”

            Lillian hesitated before taking her hand away.

            “I will contact you when the time is right. Have the Order give me full protection by then. And I mean the Order’s protection. Not the Ministry. I don’t want to die again by their hands this time.”

            With that, Lillian quickly left, turning heads of men as she walked due to her attire. Draco sat at his seat, fingering both the pendant and the vial, wondering about the events that had and will be unfolded, still trying to digest all the facts that he had been given to. When he was about to take another sip of butterbeer he had ordered, a hand grabbed him by the shoulder, shocking him out of his reverie. Looking up, he feared that he had been caught by his father or one of his goons but was taken aback to see Remus glaring back at him with his golden eyes.

            “R…Remy! W…What are you…?” Draco’s words were caught in his throat as he saw the letter he had forgotten to hide brandished at his face. “I…I can explain…”

            Without a word, Remus pulled Draco up and dragged him to the fireplace and held him tight, Floo-ing back to the Black estate and dragged him all the way upstairs to their room. He set the young blonde onto the bed and had his hands on his hips.

            “Who was that woman?” Remus demanded.

            “It’s…It’s nobody,” Draco tried to worm his way out of it. “She’s…just a friend of mine…”

            “A friend? A friend that you would risk your safety and the safety of our twins to go out and meet? A friend who dresses up like a hooker and flashing her breasts at you when you already have me?”

            “I didn’t mean to. It’s just that she had something important…Wait, that’s not really your business, is it? Were you following me? How did you even know it was me? I had this Notice-Me-Not pendant on!”

            “No wonder you look like someone else back there, but your scent didn’t fool me,” Remus grabbed the pendant, pulled it off and threw it aside. “So this is how it is, huh? She gave you a gift and writes you secret messages like this and you’re going all out on an affair. You’re pregnant with our cubs and you still decide to cheat on me behind my back!”

            “I didn’t ch…”

            “What were you thinking going out there like that? And in your condition no less! What if your father catches you? What if your father’s lackeys have powerful magic to be able to see through that petty disguise of yours? What if you become Voldemort’s next target? What if I hadn’t come after you? Do you want to get Abigail and Amarinth killed?!”

            “Will you just listen…”

            “If you don’t love me anymore and want to take our cubs away from me, then just bloody say so!”

            Without warning, Draco’s hand flew across Remus’ face, the loud smack almost echoing across the room. When the sting on Remus’ cheek settled in to make him realize what had just happened, he was met with Draco’s tearful face.

            “How dare you? How dare you accuse me like that?! Would I have accepted you as you are if I didn’t love you? Would I have risked my everything to give my all to you I didn’t love you? Would I have kept these babies if I didn’t love you? Everything I have done, I have done it for you and you accuse me of having an affair?! _How dare you?!_ ”

            “Then what were you doing with that woman? Why did you have to go behind my back for this…”

            “I did it because I wanted to save Harry! I did it because you wanted to save Harry! I DID IT BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!!!”

            Remus was taken aback. He couldn’t comprehend what Draco was trying to say, but he could tell from his tone that he had just made the biggest mistake of his life accusing his mate like that.

            “I…I don’t understand…What…”

            “ _Of course_ you don’t understand!” Draco shouted, his mood swings contributing to his outburst. “You’re so busy with your stupid Order that you barely have time for me! You’re never home nowadays, always hanging out with them and never really give me the details of what you talk about, like I’m not worth helping you at all! Harry is my friend too, and I deserve to contribute just as much as you do! I didn’t tell you about this meeting of mine because Hermione thought you might worry unnecessarily, which is true obviously by the way you just behaved! That _woman_ had vital information about this whole case and I can’t just stay cooped up in here and do nothing while you guys keep hitting a dead end over and over again! God, why do I even bother risking myself getting this?!”

            Remus saw Draco pull out the vial from his robe pocket and was prepared to smash it onto the ground. He didn’t know what was in it, but his instincts told him that whatever was in it was bloody important. Quickly, he reached over and wrestled the vial out of Draco’s hand, put it aside and held Draco close to him, stroking his back and rocking him to and fro.

            “Shh, shh, shh…I’m sorry, Drake. I didn’t know how lonely I made you feel. I’m sorry I accused you. Shh…”

            “How could you do this to me? How could you think of me that way?” Draco bawled in Remus’ arms, batting his chest with all his strength. “After what we’ve been through, how could you not trust me?? You…You bastard!! I hate you!!”

            “Shh…You don’t hate me, please,” Remus begged, rocking him some more. “Don’t say you hate me. I’m sorry, Drake, I’m so sorry. Please forgive me.”

            The couple held each other like this for quite a while, the older man trying his best to soothe the young blonde to calm down from his tears. After crying for probably the longest time he had ever cried, Draco calmed down and just nuzzled against Remus’ chest, breathing in his scent as he told him everything from the first time he met Lillian to the secret meeting they just had. After hearing everything, Remus scratched his chin in confusion, trying to take in all this.

            “Well, Hermione speaks the truth when she said that this Lillian girl is already dead back then, since I actually read some of the case files Miss Tonks and Master Shacklebolt bring in, and that she is right about me probably going on a worrying frenzy—though it’s a little too late for that now—but if what Lillian said is true, then this whole Voldemort issue is bigger than we thought.”

            “No kidding,” Draco replied, then a short pause before he whispered, “I’m sorry for hitting you, and…I’m sorry I said I hate you. I…didn’t mean it…”

            “It’s OK, my mate,” Remus replied as he caressed Draco’s cheek. “I am the one at fault for jumping into conclusions and accusing you in the first place. I swear, it’s the wolf in me that made me so jealous just now, being Lillian is so pretty and all.”

            “Not even the goddess Aphrodite can tear my attention away from you, Remy. You know that.”

            “Then I’m glad, because there is nothing in the world that rival my love for you and our cubs.”

            With that, Remus leaned down and kissed Draco passionately. Draco kisses him back just as passionately until the need for air made Remus pull away.

            “I have to stop,” Remus said a little breathlessly.

            “Hmm? Why?” Draco looked up at him worriedly. “Have I done something wrong?”

            “Not that. If I continue, I may hurt you. We did have a bit of a rough night last night, you know what I mean.”

            “True, my ass still does feel a little raw, but…” Draco blushed a little in the midst of his giggle, then pointed at his boner. “Your kiss just made me…”

            “Well,” Remus grinned. “Why don’t we take care of that then?”

            So saying, he moved in between his mate’s legs and leaned down to lick him, slowly taking Draco into his mouth, savouring the taste. Draco moaned at the feeling, his hands clenched at the sheets beneath him. When Remus swallowed him down to the root, fucking his throat with Draco’s cock, Draco soon let loose his scream of approval, his fingers entangled in Remus’ hair.

            “Ahh~! Yes, yes, yes~!! So...So good~!!”

            Remus responded by playing with his balls while he sucked him, occasionally lifting up to run his tongue up and down Draco’s cock.

            “Ooh, ooh gods…!! It’s too much…!! I’m…I’m gonna cum…!!!” Draco’s moans went a pitch higher as his hips unconsciously bucked. Remus chuckled around him and pulled off, stroking him.

            “Don't you think that is what I want?”

            “I’m close…” Draco whined, his breathing getting erratic. “I’m gonna cum soon…Please…Suck me some more…”

            “Beg for it, love,” Remus said, licking the tip.

            “Please…Please…I beg you…Remy, please…Make me come…!”

            “So beautiful when you beg,” Remus grinned and took him in his mouth again, sucking him hard.

            Draco’s eyes widened in ecstasy as the rush came. Within moments, he shot his load into Remus’ mouth, screaming Remus’ name. Remus drank it all down before leaning up to kiss Draco, letting him taste a little bit of himself in his mouth. Draco was surprised at first, but soon gave in to the ecstasy of tasting himself. Remus gently pulled Draco’s hand to his own cock, not wanting to let go of Draco’s lips, in which Draco knew the drill and started stroking him, still kissing him back hungrily. Remus thrust into that hand. He ran his hand through Draco’s hair, roughly kissing him and Draco responded by tightening his grip and stroking along with Remus’ thrusts,

            “You can take me if you want,” Draco spoke between kisses.

            “Only if you want me to, Drake,” Remus replied, even though in reality he was so hard.

            “I want you. I want you so much.”

            Remus nodded. He quickly took out the lube and poured it generously on his hand before rubbing it on his already slick cock. He rubbed it around Draco’s hole and within it to prepare the blonde briefly before he leaned down and kissed him, trying his best not to hurt Draco as he entered him. Draco moaned in pleasure as Remus entered him. He didn’t mind the brief preparation and the mild burn as he entered; he was too turned on and too wanton to care about all this petty inconveniences.

            “"So good, Draco,” Remus said, his lips just inches away from Draco’s, starting off at a fast pace, as much as Draco’s condition allowed him to. He was so close. “I am going to cover your whole body with my come that you will have no scent but mine on you.”

            “Mmh, yes…!” Draco let out a euphoric moan after moan as Remus pummeled him mercilessly. “Dee…Deeper…Master…So good…!”

            “Yes, yes, yes…! You just want to be covered with your mate’s seed. It is what you live for, isn’t it?”

            “Yes, yes, I…I want my whole body to be covered with your warm seed,” Draco moaned in pleasure as the last hard thrust hit his spot, bringing his cock to life again and throbbing.

            “You are to love me and no one else." Remus demanded as he continued thrusting, leaning down to kiss, bite and lick the young blonde’s neck. “Do you love me?”

            “Yes! Yes! I love you till the end of time~!! I love you forever and a day~!!” Draco was outright screaming now, feeling the double assault of pain on his neck and pleasure in his ass, his cock dripping wet with pre-cum, and was taken by surprise when Remus rolled them over so Draco was on top.

            “Prove it, my little mate,” Remus grinned, holding onto Draco’s pregnant belly to support it. “Fuck yourself on me.”

            Draco whined in protest a little before doing as he was told, jamming Remus’ cock deeper into his ass as he bobbed up and down, his sweet spot ravaged and making him howl with pleasure. Remus let out a satisfied growl as he reached up to stroke Draco’s cock, making Draco moan even louder as he felt his cock being stroked. Soon both of them could no longer hold back as the blonde let loose his load a second time, followed by the half-wolf who quickly pulled out and erupted all over Draco’s belly, covering it with string upon string of come as he let out a wolf-like howl of completion. After a few moments of ecstasy, both of them collapsed onto the bed side by side, totally sated. Despite his body weaker than water, Remus moved over to hold his little blonde lover close in his arms.

            “I promise I will never accuse you of anything before I investigate it for sure,” Remus whispered in Draco’s ear. Draco reciprocated the hug and leaned to his ear as well.

            “And I promise I will never do anything serious behind your back.”

            “I love you, Drake.”

            “I love you, Remy.”

            Those were the last words—along with a deep kiss—before they both passed out in their afterglow.


	74. Chapter 74

            “Over here, sire! Come join us for a drink!”

            Voldemort searched for the owner of the voice and saw Igor Karkaroff waving at him along with Antonin Dolohov and Bellatrix Lestrange, sitting far off at the corner of Newt’s Breath, one of Knockturn Alley’s many speakeasies that provide clientele discretion, and for Voldemort’s case, he would definitely need it. He went up to him and took a chair.

            “Don’t mind if I do.”

            Harry stood behind him, looking out of place as he was dressed in one of the girl clothes that Lucius bought for him, in addition to the corset that was underneath it. He was minding his own business for a moment there, making small talk to his little baby bump when all of a sudden, Voldemort decided to take him out by rummaging through Harry’s wardrobe to choose the clothes and then attaching a leash on his dog-tag collar and dragging him out without as much as a reason why. A passer by pinched his rump before anyone could even notice, making him jump a little. Aside from Severus, Harry had rarely been outside with his Masters unless they were in a good mood. He was usually locked in at home until used then left all alone to wallow in self-pity. As much as he didn’t like it, he moved closer to Voldemort to deter them from touching him, in which the latter wrapped his arm around the boy possessively.

            “Ah, we meet again, young ‘un,” Dolohov grinned cruelly as he ruffled Harry’s hair, making him flinch in contact.

            “Please, be gentle with him,” Voldemort said, though his tone was nowhere sincere or concerned. “He is quite fragile after all, being he is with child.”

            “Well, that is quite a surprise,” Bellatrix snorted. “I have heard Lucius telling me about him being knocked up by Snivellus, but I didn’t expect it to be true.”

            “Such a nuisance,” Karkaroff scoffed as he took a sip of vodka. “Why do you not just get rid of it, sire?”

            “Unfortunately if I do that, he will lose his pussy,” Voldemort replied as he took his drink order directly from the waitress’s tray, goosing her as she left, “which is one of the effects of the impregnation potion he ingested, and quite frankly, I like him being a pussy boy. So much fun to play with and I am certainly not quite done with him yet. Now, on to the business at hand…”

            While they discussed about their next targets, Harry couldn’t help dashing his head around, looking at his surroundings. He kept having the feeling that he was being watched, like someone was behind him ready to pounce on him and shag him senseless. Well, technically, his getup warranted staring eyes, especially when he was wearing that dog-tag and the leash that was tied at the foot of Voldemort’s chair to keep him in place, but it wasn’t that he was worried the most. It was that really dreaded feeling that something bad was going to happen to him if he stayed here any longer and the feeling that he was already targeted and will be violated if he continued to show his presence in this dark and gloomy room. His eyes darted from every direction, trying to see from whom he was getting the sense of dread from but couldn’t figure out who or where.

            This time someone did brush Harry, as in a full-fledged hand stroking past his butt underneath the plaited checkered mini skirt he was wearing. Harry jumped and looked around. There were three men looking at him, their yellow teeth grinning from their drinks. He knew that look, and it definitely spelled bad news. He doubted that Voldemort would even care if he was raped there and then by those 3 men, probably even enjoy the show. He had to get out of here, regardless if he had nowhere else to go or run and hide, as long as it was anywhere but here.

            “Mi…Milord…? I need to go to bathroom.” Harry muttered. Voldemort eyed at him suspiciously and Harry looked up from his lowered head. Maybe if he was submissive enough, he would be able to convince Voldemort to let him loose.

            “Very well,” Voldemort replied and undid the leash. “But be quick about it, and don’t think of trying to escape, because I will know.”

            “Y…Yes, milord.”

            Trying to contain his excitement and anxiety, he made it to the bathroom and immediately scoured the area. Unfortunately, Lady Luck was not on his side. Inside there was no window and when he looked back out, there was no way he could get out without being noticed or being caught or even without looking suspicious. Sighing, he would have to try this a different time. He went back in to relieve himself. He really didn’t have to go but being out of the crowded room felt good as he was away from prying eyes that he had long since forgotten after being away from life of slavery. But before Harry could walk out of the bathroom, the three men who checked him out shoved him back in, locking the door behind them.

            “Where do you think you’re going, pretty thing?” one of the men said, grinning cruelly as he shoved Harry further into the bathroom, barring him from opening the door.

            “Mi…Milord is waiting for me,” Harry gulped and backed away. “He is very rich and powerful.”

            “Well, he ain’t here, ain’t he?” the other man sneered. “He’s just gonna have to wait his turn.”

            “He is waiting for me,” Harry tried again, his voice wavering as his heart fell into his stomach. “He will come for me.”

            He didn’t know whether he said that to convince himself that Voldemort would come to rescue him, which was highly unlikely, or Severus would.

            “Not when he can’t hear you, he won’t,” the first man said as he cast a Silencing Charm all over the bathroom. “Strip him, boys.”

            The two men did so, using spells to literally tear his clothes off. Harry tried hiding in one of the stalls saying almost to himself that he will be rescued as he tried to cover his body with his hands, but was met with the mocking laughter of the three men.

            “Don’t hold your breath, slave. You’re just as good as you give us,” the third man used a spell to drag him out of the stall and pin him on the floor.

            “Check out that bud,” the second man opened the folds of Harry’s vagina to reveal his clit within. “Ain’t it a beauty? That man wasn’t kidding when he said he’s a knocked up pussy boy.”

            “Don’t…!” Harry whimpered, trying to struggle but his body was no match for the strength of three men as the first man leaned down to lick the clit.

            “Mmm, your Master must be lucky to have this bud in his mouth. Tastes good.”

            “Check out the ass as well. I’d say he’s been really well-trained even before he’s knocked up,” the third man stuck a saliva-coated finger in. “He’s really digging it.”

            “No! STOP!” Harry tried to repel the finger but it was not good. His body was coming to life even if he didn’t want it.

            “Oh yeah, this slave is such a slut,” the second man pulled himself out. “I’m getting hard just looking at him. So who’s doing his pussy in first?”

            “You pulled the short straw, didn’t you?” the third man growled as he shoved the second man away. “I get to go first!”

            “Yeah, whatever,” the first man took himself out as well. “Get on with it. I get dibs on his ass though.”

            Harry turned his head to the side, tears coming down his face. Where was Voldemort? Surely he had to notice he had not come back? Or was he still talking to his followers? He may not care whether he was being raped by other people or not, but surely he would’ve noticed that since he had not come out from the bathroom for so long, he would’ve suspected that he had tried to run away or something and come to investigate. Or worse, could these three men be Voldemort’s underlings sent by him to rape him? No, they did not sound like they knew Voldemort or were part of Voldemort’s crew, but how could Voldemort not realize his absence? The third man lubed himself up slightly with the slight wetness of Harry’s pussy and proceeded to enter him, while the first man spat on his hand to lube up his cock and shoved it into Harry’s ass.

            “Damn, damn, damn! Fuck, this slut is tight!” the first man groaned, pushing in all the way to the hilt.

            “Yeah, and he’s pretty tight at the front door too!” the third man laughed, thrusting in and out of the boy, fucking him hard. “Ooh, yeah, baby. This pussy is good. He’s gripping me in.”

            “C’mon, man. Just get on with it!” the second man scolded, looking at both his friends grudgingly while he stroked himself.

            “STOP!!” Harry screamed out, feeling like he was going to be split in two as he sobbed. “Please…stop…!!”

            “Shut up, slut, and suck me,” the second man grumbled as he thrusted his member in Harry’s mouth.

            Harry gagged around the man's cock. He blinked as more tears fell. He was being raped and help was nowhere in sight. Would they even care if they knew? Harry knew he would be in deep trouble but he did it anyway. Steeling himself, he bit down on the man’s cock, hard enough to make it bleed, making the second man shout out in pain and pull out.

            “Ow! Fuck! You bitch!” he cursed as he slapped Harry’s face so hard until his lips bled.

            “Hey, watch the merchandize!” the first man scolded and shoved him. “I don’t want him konked out by you before I come inside him!”

            “Mmh, yes!” the third man groaned, picking up his pace. “Yes, yes, yes, I’m getting close…”

            Just at that moment, a blast at the door was heard, breaking it open. Harry looked up and saw that it was the girl he met at Trinity Vane, dressed in prostitute attire and standing beside another girl with flaming strawberry-blonde hair and eyes of sea-blue. He could not see what was going beyond the bathroom but he could hear a bit of commotion going on, some trying to come over to see what the matter was but was scared away by the glare of the strawberry-blonde to mind their own business. Voldemort was nowhere in sight and he couldn’t even hear his voice or see him approaching the bathroom. He didn’t know who the strawberry-blonde was, but the look on the three men as they saw her standing there with a look that spelt a thousand deaths at the display without even needing to ask what was going on was evident that she was not someone to be trifled with.

            “M-M-Ms. Evans…” the third man quickly pulled out along with the first, making the boy hiss. “Uh…This is not how it looks…”

            The strawberry-blonde didn’t let him finish as she yelled a spell and caused one of them to crash against the wall. She then picked up the second and the first man with a spell as well and threw them around the wall, barely missing Harry who was still held in place on the ground by the spell. She used her spell to pick all three and slam them together side by side on the wall, all three men bleeding from being crashed everywhere. Seething with anger, she finally cast the Cruciatus curse on them, making them scream but their voices muted. Harry could see all this going on out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t care what happened to them; he just wanted the pain to go away.

            “Help…me…” Harry begged, letting out a choked sob.

            While the strawberry-blonde was busy torturing the men, the girl he met at Trinity Vane came up to him and undid the spell that held him. Quickly, she took off her robe and wrapped it around Harry before embracing him close. Harry wrapped his arms around her as if his life depended on it and sobbed into her neck. He didn’t care who his savior was, as long as it was _somebody_ saving him.

            “It’s OK, Harry. We’re here. It’s all over now,” the girl whispered as she rocked him to and fro to comfort him. “C’mon, Beck. Let’s get outta here.”

            The strawberry-blonde she called Beck glared at her for a minute for ruining her fun before she released the curse off the three men. With Harry supported between them, the girls made a run for it to the back door of the speakeasy before everyone else flocked to the bathroom to find out what was going on.

            From the corner of his eye, Harry thought he saw Voldemort among the crowd, glaring at them with a vengeance.

\--:--

            “You should’ve let me finish them off, Lil.”

            Lillian ignored Beck’s comment as she noticed Harry gone out cold after passing through the fireplace into the Medic Quarters of Kym, much to the surprise and joy of Ard-Rí Constantine to see the boy. The good medi-wizard quickly called for a manservant to help bathe Harry and scrub him clean and ordered him to take him to his room once he’s done while he quickly gathered his equipment to examine the boy.

            “You’re always spoiling my fun, you know that?” Beck grumbled again as she lit a cigarette and took a whiff. “Even when you’re dead.”

            “Well, I’m not exactly entirely dead anymore now, am I?” Lillian muttered as she watched the servant help Harry into the tub and cleaned him from head to toe. He only came around as he was being dried and with the servant’s help he got to the bed and was dressed in a school night robe before tucked into bed. Lillian came up to him and stroke his hair gently despite his flinch—a reflexive move after being in such harsh treatment by Voldemort for so long—and smiled kindly at him. “How are you feeling now, Harry?”

            “I’m…OK, I guess…” Harry managed to whisper out through his hoarse voice after being made to give head harshly. “Th…Thank you…Ms…?”

            “Lillian. Lillian Rome. You can call me Lil if you want. And this here,” Lil gestured at Beck, “is Rebecca Evans a.k.a. Beck. You can say she’s your cousin of sorts, from your mother’s side.”

            “Yo,” Beck saluted in a cool way before taking another drag of her cigarette.

            “C…Cousin…?” Harry blinked in surprise.

            “I’m born from your mother’s elder half-brother, Tyrone Evans. Your mother and aunt were born from your maternal grandfather’s second marriage, only that my dad decided to keep his last name even after his mother remarried, and our parents only reconciled after your father convinced your mother to meet my Pops. My parents are still alive and well, by the way, so we’re not exactly in the same boat, though I am in danger of being Voldemort’s next target, what with me being a Muggle-born and all.”

            “Not helping, Beck,” Lil glared at her, in which Beck just gave her a I-couldn’t-care-less shrug.

            Harry smiled slightly at Beck. Even though he was the last Potter at the moment, he took comfort in knowing that he was not alone as he still had a blood-related family, even if it was from his mother’s side. He was about to ask how they knew where he was and how they rescued him with such ease when he suddenly felt a pain in his middle, letting out a cry as he curled in a fetal position.

            “Yo, you alright there, Har?” Beck asked, her tone showing concern.

            “My belly hurts. Like I’m being torn inside.”

            “Oh my, we’d better…” Lil was about to fetch Ard-Rí Constantine when he saw the said medi-wizard come in with his equipment. “Ah, speak of the devil. Come quick, something’s wrong with Harry.”

            “Take off his covers,” Ard-Rí Constantine replied as he got his gear out. “I need to see if there is bleeding.”

            Lil did as she was told, comforting the boy as he whimpered, tears starting to well up as he feared for the safety of the baby.

            “Well, no blood, thank Merlin, so it’s possibly not a miscarriage,” the medi-wizard said as he undid Harry’s robe and ran his wand over his middle. “Ah, I see. Your womb is stretching since you’re coming close to your second trimester. You body is still trying to get use to the child inside you. Don’t worry, it won’t last long. Probably will be over by nightfall.”

            “It still hurts,” Harry whined, though his heart was relieved that his baby was still safe. “Can I take anything for this?”

            “Afraid not, m’boy. You’ll just have to bear with it for a while. I shall have to prepare your pre-natal vitamins later on to ensure the baby’s growth. Other than that, my scanning magic indicates that your child is still as healthy as a horse,” Ard-Rí Constantine patted his baby bump gently with a kind smile. “You’ve got a trooper here, m’boy, just like you. Welcome back, by the way.”

            “Thank you, Ard-Rí Constantine.”

            “Is there anything else we need to be careful of?” Lil asked.

            “Nope. Like I said, he will be coming into the second trimester, which means he will be eating more and gaining weight, which is normal, and he will have even more mood swings. I suggest that the father of the child be prepared for being cussed at, cry, and things being thrown. And try to keep stress to a minimum.”

            “I’ll be sure to tell him that, Ard-Rí Constantine.”

            “Well, I’ll be seeing you then with your vitamins,” Ard-Rí Constantine grinned as he heard frantic footsteps approaching. “And I see you already starting to have visitors.”

            Harry was soon bombarded by the loud squeals of Becka, the happy exclamation of Aaron, the excited questions of Rach and the quiet smile of Jude—the first smile he saw from her ever since they met—as they all gathered around him, with Becka doing most of the crying and hugging.

\--:--

            The Order—minus Albus who was at school at the moment—was thoroughly shocked and appalled after they looked into Lillian’s memory one by one in the Pensieve after receiving it from Remus who got it from Draco. Even the nonchalant drunkard Sirius was actually surprised at how the event had turned out.

            “I knew it!” Severus growled. “I knew that Malfoy had a hand in this! We must storm to his place at once and make him confess his crimes!”

            “Hold on here, Snape,” Tonks tried to calm the ex-Potions Master down. “We’ve just done a sweep of his manor and we found no evidence on his part in Harry’s kidnapping. We can’t just go in there again without probable cause.”

            “Since when have you cared about Ministry procedures?! He has my pet and my child in him with him! What other probable cause do you need?!”

            “I will have to agree with Snape on this one, Tonks,” Moody said, defending Severus. “The Ministry does not care a hoot about this case, even less about the boy and about Malfoy’s involvement in anything. They wouldn’t even touch that man with a ten-foot pole, let alone prosecute him. I say we heed this as evidence and perform another search at Malfoy’s place, see if we had missed anything.”

            “But if we show this to the Ministry, they will just dismiss it as a slave,” Tonks said. “No matter how alike to Harry he may be, the Ministry are just going to deny it no matter how the truth is rubbed on their faces. They will just say it’s a slave girl and be off with it.”

            “Who said anything about showing this to the Ministry?” Moody asked. “We can always let them know later _after_ we do the search. No harm in bending the rules a little.”

            “I agree as well,” Kingsley seconded the motion. “This is incriminating evidence as it is at the moment to prosecute Malfoy. We cannot waste our time going through all the red tape to let the Ministry grant us another search.”

            “But then that would…” Tonks was about to retaliate some more when the familiar crackle of a firecall came in. Severus went to answer it.

            “Hey there, Drake. What’s wrong?”

            “Hey, Uncle Sev,” Draco looked excited, with a tint of pink across his fair cheeks. “I’ve got great news! Lillian just owled me a letter! Harry is safe! He’s at Kym right now!”

            After a few seconds of letting the news sink in, Severus ended the firecall and made a mad dash towards his carriage to catch the next train ride possible.


	75. Chapter 75

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ooh, this is a chapter you will not want to miss since everything is about to be revealed about the conspiracy here. Oi vey, conspiracies are HARD to write~!

            “Well, well, if it isn’t the famous Rebecca Evans the Iron Maiden.”

            Beck looked up from her cigarette and frowned at the remark made by Sirius Black.

            “Yeah, well, look what the cat, or should I say, dog dragged in.”

            If looks could kill, Beck and Sirius were more or less in a lethal showdown as they glared at each other, trying to outmatch each other’s visual ferocity. It was only when Tonks whacked Sirius at the back of his head that Sirius broke eye clashes with the strawberry-blonde.

            As soon as Severus got to Kym, his first instinct was to go and see his beloved, but unfortunately he was unable to see him awake as after the ordeal and after his classmates’ visitation, Harry was literally out cold, sleeping peacefully for the first time in so many weeks under captivity. Ard-Rí Constantine assured the ex-Potions Master that all is well and that the child was safe and growing strong, although his physical examination revealed that Harry had indeed being forced into sexual intercourse, and also the fact that he could not remove the dog-tag collar around Harry’s neck for fear of setting off a curse or something, judging by the magical residue that lingered around it. Severus’ heart was screaming in agony and in rage over the men who had violated his beloved and wanted to make them pay a million times over for their misdeeds, especially when he saw that degrading name his beloved was given carved on that wretched dog-tag, but his mind told him to keep calm, to remain a level-head because his pet needed him the most right now.

            The Order, including Albus, soon came along to check on Harry to confirm Draco’s news. Albus was the second most relieved person next to Severus to see his little grandson alive and well, and Remus practically almost broke into tears when he saw his little friend and ex-colleague there, sleeping as if he was the most innocent child in the world and that nothing could harm him, even though in reality it did. Everyone was equally upset at the medi-wizard’s diagnosis, but like Severus, they also had to keep a level-head lest they made a mess of things for both themselves and Harry. Draco, after informing Severus, made another firecall to the Old Married Couple at their Gryffindor common room to inform them as well and in a thrice, they announced it to all the DA members via owl and, along with Draco, took the journey down to Kym regardless the fact that it was still a school week and almost nearing exams.

            Their best friend had to come first, after all.

            After taking turns visiting the sleeping Harry, everyone, including Draco and the Old Married Couple, gathered at Headmistress Casey Kyteler-Magee’s office, all set and ready—anxious, even—to hear what Lil had to say about everything that has been going on since she made her first appearance.

            “I bet you’re wondering why am I here, claiming to know what I know, and be in the company of the infamous Iron Maiden,” Lil started as she took a sip of tea that were brought by the hired help of Kym.

            “Oh, come on, woman,” Moody said impatiently. “Don’t beat about the bush here. Details, details.”

            “Patience, Moody,” Kingsley urged. “Let her speak.”

            “Well,” Lil took a deep breath before continuing, “I’m sure you know of my background. Lillian Rome of the Rome family, Muggle-born, first victim of Tom Marvolo Riddle who should’ve been dead for more than five decades ago.”

            “Yes, we know that much about you,” Tonks replied. “You were killed when Voldemort was 18 years old at that time and your death was the beginning of many other deaths involving non-purebloods throughout the wizarding world.”

            “That is correct. And I’m sure you all know about the age-old horrifying background of his family and his past that led him to this path of destruction.”

            “Yes, that’s right,” Albus commented. “But what does that have to do with…”

            “Because everything you know after the part where he became a legitimate wizard after poisoning his warlock foster father is a lie. In fact, even before that, there were some truths that were fabricated and embellished to antagonize him.”

            The Order looked at each other in confusion, even the all-knowing, all-seeing Albus Dumbledore. A lie? Everything they knew about Voldemort had been a lie? How was that possible?

            “That is absurd,” Hermione scoffed. “His background clearly states…”

            “That he was born of a Muggle father and a pureblood mother?” Lil chided, cutting her short. “That his mother was a homicidal maniac who poisoned her own family and raped his father to conceive him, and then gave birth in Azkaban before given the Dementor’s Kiss? That his father, after being forced by the Ministry to take him in, abused him till he lost his mind and killed him like his mother did to her family, and did the same to his foster father after inheriting his fortune and becoming a legitimate wizard, hiding behind his wealth to do his crimes? Is that what you’re trying to say?”

            “Hey, easy there,” Ron said, defending his fiancée who seemed to be offended by Lil’s remark. “She was just trying to make a point.”

            “Too much of a point, I’m afraid,” Beck snorted, earning a glare from the Old Married Couple. “Lil hates know-it-alls, thanks to being surrounded by them when she was alive.”

            “My point is that we have been misled by the Ministry’s antagonizing Voldemort to cover their asses when their plan went a little haywire. Yes, the part about him being a half-blood and his mother’s condition was true. Yes, the part about him being raised and abused by his birth father was true, and so was the part of him being raised by a travelling warlock whom he killed for his fortune and wizard title. But what happened in between, no one truly knew, until I found out about it through Beck.”

            “What part does the Iron Maiden have in all this?” Sirius raised a brow.

            “I was the one who found her in such a disheveled state,” Beck replied. “She was totally disoriented and confused when she came out of the Shrieking Shack, and the first thing she asked when she saw me—I was hanging about after patrolling Hogsmeade for a suspect on a case I was working at that time—was the directions to Hogwarts. I recognized her from the photos I’ve read through the case files of Voldemort when I first started off as an Auror clerk in the Ministry and I couldn’t believe my eyes at first, but there she was, in the flesh. The mass murderer’s first victim.”

            “I have no recollection whatsoever of how, where, when and why I was there,” Lil said. “I just remember being violated to death by that monster and the next thing I knew I was naked and cold and wrapped in bed sheets, and every part of my joints was aching, like I had premature arthritis or something. After my mind cleared under Beck’s care, I realized that more than 50 years have passed since my death and I was apparently brought back to life. By whom, I still don’t know.”

            “It could be from the Dark Arts,” Severus noted. “There have been rumours about a Forbidden Magic in which it involved revival of the dead, though how long the effects would last is unknown.”

            “Then you can say I’m like a time-bomb that could go off anytime soon, huh?” Lil looked at him sadly.

            “I wouldn’t put it past that.”

            “Anyhow, when I realized her identity, I knew there had to be something more to it that meets the eye,” Beck continued. “Something that is more than just a lunatic psychopath going out killing people just because he didn’t like non-purebloods. Not much people know this, but I am related to Harry from the mother’s side because my father is born from our grandfather’s first marriage,” she waved away everyone’s look of surprise, “but was never listed as Harry’s immediate family because my father and his mother only knew each other’s existence a week before his parents’ death, and also the fact that the Ministry was quick to relocate Harry to the Dursleys before my father found out about the death, or my father would’ve taken Harry in our family in a heartbeat. The even weirder thing is that since my dad is a Muggle, they refused to disclose Harry’s whereabouts with the excuse that my dad is not the closest in blood with Harry’s mother due to him being from a first marriage.”

            “But I knew about Harry’s existence, even though this is only the first time I have ever met him. And since he is my half-cousin and under the threat of Voldemort, naturally I wanted to look out for him from any forms of threat. So, with that thought in mind and armed with Lil’s death case, I decided to dig deeper into this case, reviewing every single detail and even breached into the Department of Mysteries to see if there were any clue as to prove both mine and Lil’s theory.”

            “We soon discovered that this whole thing started with a prophecy written way back even before Voldemort was born,” Lil announced.

            “Which is…?” Sirius raised a brow.

            “The prophecy says that a child from the light and a child from the dark will be born and together they will unite the nation of Muggles and the wizard world as one, and that the mother of the child of light is Harry James Potter and the mother of the child of dark is you, Draco Malfoy.”

            “M…Me?” Draco gasped in shock. “That…That’s impossible!”

            “This is a breakthrough!” Kingsley exclaimed quite happily. “An alliance that we’ve been dreaming of since the end of the days of witch hunt! Think about it, we will no longer have to hide our powers from society anymore. This is the day that will change everything!”

            “But…But why me? Why Harry?” Draco exclaimed. “Anyone can produce a child of the light and the dark!”

            “Oh, this time, there is nothing vague about it,” Beck replied. “The prophecy was made known to the Ministry by a very powerful Seer at that time, probably more powerful than Trelawney and had made 100% accurate predictions in the past without fail. She specifically indicated in her visions that Harry, because he is born from a family who dedicated their lives to doing good deeds for the better of society and mankind as a whole, entitled him to be the mother of the child of light, and you, Malfoy, because of your family, especially your father, and their dealings with everything that is sinister and impure, entitled you to be the mother of the child of dark. You and Harry’s family are the polar opposites of each other, so to speak. They even have detailed images and notes of her predictions stored for further reference and you and Harry’s faces were in it. In fact, even the father of the child and their nature behind their compatibility had already been predicted.”

            “You…You don’t mean…?” Severus feared the worst.

            “Yes,” Lil turned to him. “You, Prof. Snape, have been a tortured soul all your life because of your family background, of having a drunkard father and a mother who loved you but was helpless to her fate due to her being disowned by her family. Harry is your soul mate, so to speak, because he needed someone to love after living a life of bleakness and despair but continued to retain his innocence, while you needed to love someone to compensate for the life you have led. You complete each other, an almost mirror image opposites of each other that makes you compatible to be the father of the child he will soon bear.

            “You, on the other hand,” Lil turned to Remus, “are a cursed being who is neither wizard nor being. Half of either side, and being abandoned by your parents at a young age, you have lived your whole life under the servitude of others and had been, in a way, a tortured soul of sorts. You, like Prof. Snape, needed someone to love and be loved for who you are inside, and Malfoy needed someone to see him as he really is, not as his status and family background makes him to be, and allow him to reawaken his passion for the one thing that truly matter, which is love, that his father claims to be superficial and non-existent. That and also the fact that your nature belongs to the dark side of the magical beings.”

            Draco, Remus and Severus looked a little listless. All this for the sake of a prophecy? There had to be something else behind this. As if reading their minds, Lil continued.

            “Yes, like you said, Mr. Shacklebolt, it is a breakthrough. Muggles and witches and wizards co-existing as one in which there will no longer be any prejudice or fear of the unknown, that everything that the Muggles hold dear about science and logic will finally come to an understanding of the workings of the supernatural and accept it as part of their reasoning of life. And the close-minded idea of magic being the works of the devil and the witch hunt that haunted the wizarding world for centuries will come to a halt and that the idea that science of Muggles and magic of the wizarding world will come together as one, making everyone’s lives easier. It’s like a dream come true, especially for the newer generations, what with the increase of Muggle-borns nowadays and more and more Muggles having an understanding of magic and their willingness to marry wizards and witches. It would’ve been a happy time for everyone.”

            “Everyone except the Ministry,” Beck noted as she lit herself another cigarette.

            Albus looked at both the girls as if he knew what they were talking about, in which Beck smiled knowingly.

            “You understand what I’m trying to say now, aren’t you, Dumbledore? The fact that the higher-ups of the Ministry, especially under the Wizengamot clan, are all pureblood elitist and the last they would want is to taint their bloodline with a bunch of Muggles who had tortured, burnt, drowned and killed numerous of their kind in the past. To have this prophecy coming true would be to have history repeating itself again, and that would be the last thing that they want happening to their society that they have worked so hard to conceal.”

            “Good Lord!” Molly exclaimed. “They can’t be serious, can they?”

            “I wouldn’t put it past them,” Arthur grumbled. “Almost three-thirds of the people working in the Ministry are purebloods, and those who are not had to undergo a strict series of interviews before they would even be considered to be hired.”

            “And only those who would stoop as low as Percy would survive in the Ministry,” Charlie rolled his eyes in contempt.

            “Still, wha’ does this Voldemort has in all this, lass?” Hagrid asked.

            “Well, we thought about that too in the beginning,” Beck said as she took another drag of the cigarette. “So we dug deeper into the files at the risk of being found, and at the risk of my career as well, and discovered that Tom Marvolo Riddle a.k.a. Voldemort was their assassin in the making.”

            “What?!” Tonks, Moody and Kingsley exclaimed in unison.

            “Usually when a prisoner is being thrown into Azkaban, the Ministry will dig into their family background so as to have a complete file report so that they could later make reference and be sure that there would be no repercussions happening,” Lil explained. “So when Voldemort’s mother was put in, naturally they investigated about her. Being the Ministry would always want to cover their asses and avoid relapse, they would’ve issued the Dementor’s Kiss on her regardless her physical status, but then they found out that she had descended from a long line of wizard mercenaries during the Grand Wizard Merlin’s timeline, assassins for hire to eradicate targets of their client’s choosing, and have been a strong believer in pureblood lineages. Voldemort’s mother was a late-bloomer in magic, thus she was always brought up with the idea that she was a Squib and was abused for it, which drove her to kill her family, and because she believed that her being a Squib and the father being a Muggle would result to her child being a Squib anyway, she was prepared to die with the child inside her. But with that knowledge of her lineage in hand, the Ministry was the one who made her keep her child to term before she was sentenced for the Dementor’s Kiss. So basically, if they had not known her descended from wizard mercenaries that would serve their purpose in eliminating this prophecy, Voldemort wouldn’t have existed and none of this would’ve started.”

            “And ironically, Harry and I would’ve never met,” Severus noted. “So it would’ve been a bit of a blessing in disguise, I suppose.”

            “No, you and Harry would’ve met either way. The prophecy was 100% accurate. Even if Voldemort had not existed and his parents still alive, you two would’ve still met by other means. He would’ve been your student. His father would’ve been friends with you. His mother would have a chance encounter with you. Either way, you two would’ve still met. The same theory goes with you two as well, Malfoy, Lupin.”

            “The real reason,” Beck chipped in, “as to why the Ministry wanted Voldemort to be born is because in the prophecy, due to the fact that Harry’s father being a pureblood but Harry’s mother a Muggle-born, Harry is considered a blood-traitor by birth and felt it unfit for him to be the mother of the child that would bring the nations together. They wouldn’t have minded if he was a pureblood because then they are able to manipulate him into not fulfilling the prophecy and everything would be fine and dandy. And having you, Snape, as the father of the child, being that you are a half-blood, was an insult to injury. And you, Malfoy, even though you’re pureblood, Lupin is a half-werewolf, a creature of the dark that the Ministry have been struggling to eliminate for decades. Having him to sire the child would be going against all things natural to them.”

            Severus felt like he had just been called the criminal of the century that was par with Voldemort and his crimes by that remark. Remus, despite knowing that his kind had been looked down for years, felt downright insulted for this, not by Beck, but by the Ministry who had indirectly insulted his cubs in that manner.

            “They knew they had to stop this prophecy from happening at all costs, but the problem was that they didn’t know which era the people in question would be born,” Lil said as she refilled her drink. “So to kill two birds with one stone, they decided to be rid of anyone who were non-pureblood, hoping to hit the jackpot at the same time. Those elitist had never liked non-purebloods anyway, and what better way to do so than to have Voldemort, a half-blood, to do their bidding and then lay all the blame on him?”

            “I got a hold of the person who watched over Voldemort’s mother while she carried the child to term and managed to make him speak the truth with Veritaserum,” Beck continued. “It turned out that he was instructed by the Ministry to use the Imperius Curse on the mother to make her carry the child to term and once the child is born, before she was able to recover from the effects of the Imperius Curse, she was immediately given the Dementor’s Kiss to tie up all loose ends. The Ministry had initially wanted the father of the child to raise him until of age where they will take him under their wing to train him to be the wizard mercenary as his ancestors were, but they had not count on the fact that the father had been abusing the boy till he was driven insane and committing the exact same crime the mother had committed to her family.

            “By the time they wanted to take Voldemort after finding out the father’s death, they were too late as he was nowhere to be found. It was after the death of the traveling warlock and him taking over his fortune and applying to be a legitimate wizard that they managed to locate him, but the deed was done. His crimes on both his biological and foster father made them realize that they had created a monster and the assassin they’ve always wanted, even though it is indirectly so. The only thing they could do was feigning ignorance, granting him his place in the wizard world and always stayed one step behind him as he went about his killing spree.”

            “Then it is true that the Ministry had always been the ones behind the scenes!” Moody exclaimed. “I always had suspicions about this from the very beginning when I read about the case files and their lack of arrest, and that it took so long to catch him and it is by the very people they feared would give birth to Potter!”

            “Yes, that’s right,” Lil nodded. “When they found out it was James Potter and Lily Evans who tipped the Aurors into apprehending Voldemort, they knew that their worst fears were coming to light, and that they had finally hit the jackpot into finding the one person who would fulfill the prophecy.”

            “Are you implying that the Ministry had a hand in Voldemort’s first escape and the assassination of Harry’s parents?” Arthur cried.

            “No one has ever escaped Azkaban, _ever_ ,” Beck said. “And yet there he was, out of prison without so much as a scratch and the Potter couple dead. Doesn’t that strike you as odd?”

            “Well, now that you mention it,” Tonks rubbed her chin in thought.

            “They hadn’t count on the Aurors being able to arrive in the scene so quickly,” Lil continued. “Or Harry would’ve been killed as well. And being that they don’t want to be implicated to be the ones behind the prison break, they pretended to be the responsible sonofagun and sent Harry far, far away as possible and to cut his ties with the wizarding world, and what better way to do so than to send him to the magic-hating family that is the Dursleys? Though, again, they hadn’t counted on the fact that the Dursleys would sell Harry off to the slave business, making him indirectly returned to the world they sought not for him to find. God works in mysterious ways, innit?”

            “I should say so,” Hermione said, smiling a little at the fact.

            “Bloody hell!” Ron said as something clicked in his mind. “You don’t mean to say that the Ministry had anything to do with him being out in the open again right now, do you?”

            “We don’t have evidence on that yet,” Beck replied. “But I wouldn’t put it past that possibility. Two escapes in a row is just too much of a coincidence. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had a hand in helping Pettigrew to aide Voldemort in escaping.”

            “All this…” Severus held himself, trembling. “All this for the sake of a prophecy and all this because they’re too prejudicial to see past their rivalry with Muggles! All this just to kill my beloved and my child! How many more lives will they have to ruin so that they could uphold their precious little ideology?!”

            “Severus, please, calm down…” Albus tried to comfort Severus but he wouldn’t hear of it.

            “No! This has gone too far!! I won’t have this! First they try to separate us, then they sent a monster they created on the loose to kill Harry, and when that didn’t work, they tried to separate us again and threatened to kill our child, and maybe even allow my pet to be an easy target for Voldemort to kill! What else are they going to do? Set up Harry as live bait?! Lure that monster to come and destroy all of us for the sake of that prophecy?! This is too much! They must be stopped, both Voldemort and the Ministry, at all costs! We can’t just sit here and idle by while they come up with another plan to hurt Harry!!”

            “I agree,” Remus said. “Lucius has already gone on a witch hunt to find Draco and abort our cubs at all costs. Who knows he might have already been in cahoots with the Ministry to stop the prophecy as well? I don’t give a damn about whether the prophecy is true or not. I am already in danger of being caught and arrested, and possibly sterilized, for impregnating Draco because of their decree against werewolves breeding. If they take Draco as well, we might as well just kill ourselves and be done with it rather than them having their hands on our cubs.”

            “Don’t play in their game, Remus,” Ron urged. “That’s probably what they want: to drive you into the corner and force you to take drastic measures for their own means.”

            “Does the other branch Ministries throughout the world know about this?” Albus asked.

            “No, not that I know of,” Beck replied. “As far as my research went, only the main branch here of the Ministry and the Wizengamot knows of this prophecy and that they are the one running the show, but if we delay this, they will definitely make it known to the other branch Ministries and try to convince them to accept the ideology. It’s not too farfetched if you think about it.”

            “Agreed,” Albus nodded solemnly and got off his seat. “You and I are going to do some more digging and collect more solid evidence to implicate the Ministry of these atrocities, along with the others of the Order. You, Moody, will gather all members of the Ministry that has yet to be corrupted by the Ministry’s ideology and go about to warn the other branch Ministries. Gather as much of them as possible and have them meet me at a secret place that I will designate later to you so that we can make this a full-scale announcement. We’re going to need all the reinforcement we can get to take them down.”

            “I wouldn’t have it any other way, sir,” Moody saluted.

            “You kids can play your part too,” Albus turned to the Old Married Couple, grinning at their surprised looks. “Oh, I know you and your little friends have been starting your own vigilante club of sorts, and I really appreciate the gesture. If you really want to help, I would like you to tell all your friends and make them warn everyone they know about this news you have heard. Get their support to help us boycott the Ministry, but do so discreetly. We don’t want to alert the Ministry of what we know just yet. Can you do that for us?”

            “Consider it done, Headmaster Dumbledore!” Hermione and Ron replied simultaneously, their faces showing eager and excitement at being given a full-scale mission.

            “I will assist the children then…” Severus said but was met with Albus’ disapproving shake of the head.

            “Harry needs you the most right now. He needs you to be there with him, to assure him that everything is alright, that it is not his fault he is the way he is right now. He needs you, Severus. You have to be there for him. And that goes for you too, Mr. Lupin. Your mate and your cubs need your protection and undivided attention now more than ever, and for this I shall have to relieve you from being a member of the Order. Both of you.”

            “Yes, Master Dumbledore,” Remus nodded, while Severus looked down quietly.

            Soon, everyone was prepared to leave, have their mission set in mind. Lil opted to be with Moody and the others to warn the branch Ministries, while Beck went with Albus on their mission to bring down Voldemort, and subsequently the Ministry, once and for all. Before Beck could leave, she was approached by Draco timidly.

            “Umm…if you don’t mind me asking…” Draco scratched his chin nervously. “Why do they call you the Iron Maiden?”

            “Because I am the only Muggle-born in the entire Auror team who is allowed to use the Unforgivable Curses at my disposal,” Beck grinned. “Remember what Ron’s dad said about non-pureblood not getting much clearance to do anything in the Ministry? Basically I am the first and only non-pureblood in the Ministry to have the license to kill. You don’t wanna know how my methods work. Trust me.”

            Draco gulped. He’d better take her word for it.


	76. Chapter 76

            Like the day Harry first came into Severus’ home, the poor boy slept for almost more than 48 hours, only occasionally waking up to go to the bathroom and to have some form of liquid food to sustain him. His friends came to visit him from time to time but they always caught him sleeping and never had the chance to see him awake. It was as if everything that had happened to him these past few weeks had literally drained out his energy and the power sleep was what he needed to recharge his body.

            During those 48 hours, everyone in the Order and the DA were busy with their plans to apprehend Voldemort and to take down the Ministry. Severus, since he was no longer a member of the Order, did not really have much of a privilege to know what went on or what they were doing at the moment to succeed their plans—either that or they were too busy to keep him updated—but he didn’t really mind at the moment. He finally had Harry by his side and there was no way he was going to be torn apart from him again. Being that he is still unemployed and he put on a hiatus in his side-income job, it enabled him to be there for the boy every step of the way, helping him with anything he needed, but because Harry’s brain was asleep most of the time, the boy barely registered who was helping him. He just knew that someone was attending to him and that was all that mattered.

            By the afternoon of the third day, Harry’s body told him that he rested enough and was ready to get up. Stretching himself awake and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he adjusted to the light that streamed into his room as he sat up on the bed and the first thing that caught his eye was Severus sitting beside his bed reading a book. Severus noticed him awake and quickly tended to him.

            “Hey, pet,” Severus smiled at him. “You fully awake now?”

            “Y…Yes…” Harry replied in a low tone, looking down at his own hands, not daring to face him.

            “Everything alright? Do you want to go to the bathroom? Do you want something to eat?”

            Harry shook his head, still looking down at his hands and being very quiet.

            “Harry?” Severus wrapped his arm around his shoulder. “Hey, Har. It’s OK. It’s over now. You don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

            “I know.” Harry replied in a small voice.

            “Relax. That life of yours with that bastard is over now. He will not touch you again. I’m right here for you, that’s all that matters.”

            “I know,” Harry repeated.

            “Talk to me, love,” Severus sighed, urging him to open up to him.

            “Not now, Sev. Not now.”

            “Alright, pet,” Severus kissed his cheek and kept his arm around him. “But I’m ready for you whenever you want to talk.”

            “D…Don’t touch me…” Harry begged, his face filled with guilt and pain.

            Severus was taken aback a little by his request but consented to letting him go, in which Harry moved to the other end of the bed, distancing himself away from the older man. Severus sighed, cursing inwardly at Voldemort for being the cause of all this. This was supposed to be a happy, emotional day where they finally were reunited together after being apart for so long and be in each other’s arms until they could no longer let go. Why did that monster have to ruin it by making his pet feel guilty of being violated?

            Harry, on the other hand, pulled his legs up to his chest. He shivered at the memory of being Voldemort’s and Lucius’ arms, of them having their way with him, making him feel things he wasn’t supposed to feel with anyone other than his beloved Severus, and of his hormones making him take in whatever they threw into him. His body felt, once again, like he was when he was still a slave: dirty, tainted, violated, used and disgusting. The phantom feeling of their touches, their words, their cocks inside him, everything was making his body involuntarily tingle, and he knew his body could no longer revert to the way he had shared with Severus. He just knew it.

            After quite a long silence and distance between each other, Harry finally got up and out of bed. Severus wanted to go to him but he had to keep his promise of not touching him.

            “I am going to take a walk to the woods.”

            “Alright. I’ll be here if you need me,” Severus replied as he watched the boy leave quietly before he sighed sadly, massaging his temples, frustrated and pissed at the damage Voldemort had done to his beloved.

            Harry went to into the woods, glad that there was no one around before he reached to a random oak tree and sat down on the ground. Why did he have to ruin the happiest day of his life? He should be in Severus’ arms, crying happy tears for finally being in his presence again and smelling in the scent of mixed potions that he loved so much on Severus. He hadn’t gone a day without having thought of Severus since the day he was taken by Voldemort but now all the memories of being with that psycho came flashing back, bringing guilt along with it. He closed his eyes shut, tears leaking out as he sobbed bitterly. He hoped to gods of all religions that he didn’t hurt Severus’ feelings by telling him not to touch him when he knew that they both needed it the most.

            Harry stayed out until the sun went down and the stars came up. Severus, after musing and making mental notes of personally slaughtering Voldemort the first chance he sees him, was starting to get worried that Harry was not coming in and it was almost dinner time. He went outside, remembering that Harry mentioned about going to the woods behind the school and soon found him there at the oak tree, his eyes red and sodden from crying.

            “Har? Come inside, it’s cold out there. Dinner is almost on, and you must eat something.”

            “Come and sit with me,” Harry said, looking up at him pleadingly.

            “Alright,” Severus nodded and sat down beside him. “You OK now, love?”

            “When he would pass out from sex and I was still awake, I would steal a look at the sky,” Harry sighed. “He was the first person to treat me like a slave after such a long time. He tried to break me. Him and Lucius.”

            “It’s not your fault, pet. You were under the captivity of a madman. He’d do anything to have fun with you in his sick twisted ways.”

            “He whipped me. He spanked and whipped me just like my past Masters used to do. I tried to smart off at him, be strong and never balk by his ways but he would really make me beg because…because he would hurt our baby if I didn’t break.”

            Severus really felt like giving all the three Unforgivable Curses on Voldemort and Lucius right now.

            “But when he tried to rape me, it was the worst I have ever felt. I guess I had expected it to happen but I never thought he would do me in such a way that he would make me enjoy it, well, at least my body did. At first I tried to resist. I tried telling myself that I didn’t like it, that I would not do it with anyone else but you, but my body wouldn’t listen. I felt like I was being ripped in two. I begged for him to stop, but he would not. He would not even stop when I started crying. I managed to convince him not to come inside me for fear of our child, but one way or another he would always…” Harry started shaking. “I tried to tell myself that this is not what I wanted, that it was the hormones and that once this is over and I’m back with you I would be back the way we used to be, but…but…”

            “Hush, don’t say it anymore,” Severus said as he held him close to his chest. “Love, this is not your fault. Your body may have responded to that monster’s touches but it is not your fault. You never wanted this. You were forced into this. You have not betrayed me. I don’t blame you for all of this. You were used for much worse than this and still I took you in, didn’t I? I don’t care what happened to you. As long as you are back here with me and that our child is safe, I don’t give a damn about anything else.”

            “Please, Severus. I don’t want to be held,” Harry pushed away. “I just can’t take being held right now, not after what had happened. I feel dirty and used, so much worse than when I was still a slave, and no matter what you say or how you feel about it, it doesn’t change the fact that whatever happened to me had happened and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

            “I’m…I’m sorry…I just…want to make you feel better, is all,” Severus hesitated for a moment before asking, “Would you like to sleep alone tonight? Would u like me to stay out of sight until you’re ready to face me?”

            “No!” Harry panicked and leaned over quickly to kiss Severus even though he really didn’t want to at the moment. “Please don’t leave me. I love you. I can’t live without you, not after we’ve been apart for so long. I can’t stand it anymore! I want to be with you!”

            “I love you too. I love you so much. You just look so upset and all, and sleeping with me would mean me holding you. I just thought you might want to have some time alone. I don’t want you to leave me either, but if you’re uncomfortable around me at the moment…”

            “I didn’t say I was uncomfortable around you. I just don’t want to be held right now. Severus, I still want to be in bed with you. I just need to deal with these old demons before you can hold me, so don’t you dare leave me.”

            “OK, if you’re sure about this,” Severus smiled gently. “Then I won’t hold you until you’re ready and want me to. Come, let’s go inside. It’s almost dinnertime, and I’m sure your friends would really want to see you fully up and about.”

            “I’ll bet,” Harry got up and brushed his pants off the dirt. “I would not be adverse to holding hands though.”

            “Then shall we?” Severus held out his hand.

            Harry nodded and took his hand, in which Severus led him inside and to the dining room of Harry’s dorm, where dinner was all set on the table by Harry’s friends.

            “Percy~!” Becka ran to hug Harry, still calling him by his name given by Albus, though Harry took care not to flinch or push her away so as not to make her worry about him not wanting to be held. “Oh, thank Merlin you’re finally and fully awake! We were so worried about you~!”

            “Oh, give him some air to breath, Becka,” Rach pulled Becka away from Harry. “He needs some space and a bit of quality time with his sweetheart.”

            “Well, I’m sure he can join us for dinner now, can he?” Aaron said as he led Harry to his seat. “We’ve been having dinner together with Prof. Snape for almost 2 days now while you were in Sleeping Beauty mode and him keeping vigil by your side, didn’t we, Jude?”

            Jude only smiled and nodded quietly.

            “Well, at least you’re keeping Severus company,” Harry replied. “I must admit I am feeling a bit peckish.”

            So while Harry ate, the quartet filled him in on what he had been missing out so far. Jude had finally turned over a new leaf and stopped being the Ice Queen and Rebel Beastess of Kym after Aaron had proven his worth and feelings for her. Pinn Creed, a fellow Banshee, was someone who wouldn’t take no for an answer when Jude refused his advances and he had tried to rape her in the library in retaliation to her rejections. Being that she had betrayed Harry and made an enemy out of her friends, she knew in her heart that she deserved to be punished this way, but she had not expected Aaron to come to her rescue by dropping books onto the guy, knocking him out and pulling her away from the scene. Jude thought he was just doing this to rub it on her face later on, but when Aaron said these exact words “Even if you have turned into the Devil himself, I would still love you” and showed her the scar on his neck, finally coming clean to what he had done for her when she was forced to wed Barty Crouch Jr., she finally broke down and cried in his arms, apologizing profusely and finally believing that Aaron’s feelings for her were true.

            Jude sincerely apologized for everything she had done to Harry, in which he forgave her readily, holding no grudge on her and said that becoming pregnant is probably the best thing that had ever happened to him before he was being kidnapped. Jude finally revealed the Christmas present she stole and hid from Harry, the wrapping still sealed and untouched. Aaron got him a crystal ball that was in a round parcel wrapped in silver and gold wrapping paper tied in a bronze bow; Rach got him a brown leathered book of advanced spell that was in a rectangular parcel wrapped in silver blue; and Becka got him the pinkish gothic-Lolita dress they saw displayed at the Muggle novelties shop that was in a square parcel wrapped in white wrapping paper with black polka-dots. Harry was happy for all the gifts except the Lolita dress, because it reminded of him going to shop for girls’ clothes with Lucius, though he didn’t let her know that in fear of upsetting her. She meant well anyway. And Jude gave Harry the Christmas present she should’ve given to Harry: a custom-made black robe that was a splitting image of Severus’ own cloak. He thanked her and received a smile from as a reply, a genuine smile that suited her so much better than the cold scowl she always wore back then.

            They even told Harry about the annual bazaar that they always hold in conjunction with the anniversary of the school. Aaron revealed that he had teamed up with Jude, Rach and Becka to start up a Japanese food stand, with Jude and Becka as his helpers, Rach as the cashier and Aaron as the chef, since when he wasn’t studying his head off in Kym, he would be back in the Muggle world, working part-time as an assistant chef in a Japanese restaurant. He surprised everyone with fast chopping techniques and the swift yet perfect way he served the dish. No one in the wizarding world has eaten real Japanese dishes before and they were curious to try it out. Jude said that many laughed when they saw Aaron wearing an apron with the word ‘fish’ in kanji on it, but when he actually threw up a live fish fresh out of the aquarium, chopped it into pieces in the mid air and caught them in the dish arranged in perfect order, their laughter turned to admiration. Becka told Harry excitedly on how he was able to chop capsicums, throw the knife up high, turn around to fry something, then catch the knife in the mid air to continue chopping without missing a beat, but Rach grumbled that his last sushi act—taking out a large live lobster out of the aquarium, putting it on the table without getting himself wet or pinched, taking out a huge mallet and cracked the shell while the lobster was still alive and kicking, grabbing the tail of the lobster and flinging it in the air before chopping the lobster in the mid air and catching it on the plate, its pieces falling chronologically in order of its shape, its shell splitting open a few seconds later, revealing the fresh, juicy flesh inside—was just plain disgusting and showing off.

            “Well, at least you provide your side of the entertainment,” Aaron replied. “Rach could actually count the money within one glance and could tell if someone has paid him more or less. She could even give the customer the exact amount of change without much effort. Though she always ended up being so busy counting her money that she often forgot to give them their customary green tea and Jude and Becka had to yell at her constantly to remind her that.”

            “Tell him about the post-bazaar party, Aaron!” Becka said excitedly.

            Aaron did not need to be told twice. He spoke that it was customary during bazaars that after counting the earnings, the students are treated to a post-bazaar party at the school main dining hall for all their hard work. There was singing, dancing, eating, drinking and merry-making, but not as great as what happened to the quartet. Aaron, after officially winning Jude’s heart, was the highlight of the party dancing as everyone watched in awe of Aaron, valedictorian of Kym, dancing arm in arm with Jude, the famous Ice Queen and Rebel Beastess of Kym who never let anyone come near her even with a ten-foot pole. Becka, who had invited her sweetheart Cyril to attend the party, was assured by the man that he would never cheat on her, that he didn’t mind her losing the ribbon and that she was the only girl for her, and he proved it to him by proposing marriage to her there and then, giving her the engagement ring that was worth much more of a symbol of their love than a mere ribbon around her neck. And the biggest surprise of all was that Rach, the girl who was equally unapproachable as Jude and who thought that all men are intellectually inferior to her, had revealed that she had a secret lover hidden behind her closet all along. It turned out that she had been having a secret affair with Prof. Matthew Roberts Lee who taught Ancient Runes since she was in 2nd year in Kym because his intellect, and good looks, was turning the young genius on till no end. Hiding behind a façade of books and theories, they would go off whenever they could to spend their private time together, and it was Jude who caught them almost getting down and dirty in Rach’s dorm when she realized that Rach was gone from the party all of a sudden, though they promised to keep it a secret from the school because of the strict teacher-student conduct.

            “And here’s the mystery man’s picture,” Becka giggled as she pick-pocketed Rach’s wallet and showed Harry the picture. He has long, quite muscular arms and was fairly tanned and quite well-built. There was a touch of Eurasian in him with hair a colour mixture of earth brown and stale green. He had slightly protruding fang among his clean, white teeth, and haunting golden yellow orbs behind clever glasses. Rach growled with a blush on her face and snatched the wallet away.

            “Breathe a word and I swear to God…”

            “Oh, don’t be such an ass,” Becka shoved her playfully. “You know you want to tell Harry anyway. We’re just helping you along.”

            After telling their side of the story, Harry briefly told them his, trying to keep the graphic details out so as not to upset them and Severus decided that it was alright for the kids to know about what he and the Order had heard from Lil and Beck about the Ministry scandal and the reason behind Voldemort’s killings. By the time he was done, even Harry was stunned.

            “You…You mean this had always been an elaborate plan by the Ministry…to kill me…?” Harry breathed.

            “Yes, I’m afraid it’s true,” Severus replied. “I’m sorry I had to break it to you like this, but you deserve to know that truth.”

            “They should realize by now that most prophecies are self-fulfilling,” Rach said. “Even if it’s true that some predictions and prophecies can be accurate, but most of the times, prophecies happen because the people who sought to stop it from happening are usually the ones who cause prophecies to happen due to their actions.”

            “I agree,” Aaron seconded the motion. “I’ve seen a lot of incidents in the Muggle world, especially in businesses where people tend to think that prices are going to go up and go all-out on a spending spree to get all their things before it happens, only to end up being the cause of price raise because the sellers thought their business is picking up and raised their prices to earn more profit. It’s self-fulfilling in itself.”

            “But then again, like that girl Lil said,” Becka chipped in. “It doesn’t matter whether the Ministry did anything or not. If they didn’t let Voldemort come to being, Harry and Mr. Snape would’ve still met. Something else would’ve happened that will cause Harry to meet him even if they didn’t intervene. Look at Harry’s friend Draco and his mate Remus. Remus is a slave and they ended up meeting each other because Draco’s father bought him. And even if he didn’t buy, someone else that Draco’s father or Mr. Snape knew might have bought him, and because Draco and Mr. Snape are family, they would’ve still met anyway. It’s all about fate. Sometimes you just can’t fight it.”

            “Still clinging onto your dreams of destiny and romance, huh?” Jude asked teasingly, earning a pout from Becka. “But seriously, I would agree with Becka on that one thing. We will never know what lies ahead in the future. If something was meant to happen, there is no stopping it. The Ministry is fighting a losing battle for refusing to see the bright side of the situation and hold on to their decrepit beliefs. Their wanting to stop the prophecy is only speeding it up, and they are making matters even worse for themselves for having a psychopath to do their dirty work.”

            “Then let’s just hope for our sake that the Order will be able to correct this situation before it’s too late.”

            Everyone nodded in agreement at Severus’ statement before slowly engaging into idle talk, sharing a few drinks in between (except Harry because of his condition). By the time they were done it was almost way past bedtime before they realized that they still had class the next day. Both Severus and Harry sent them off, wishing them well, before clearing the table and doing the dishes.

            “Tonight I want us to sleep nude,” Harry suddenly said as he washed the last remaining plates.

            “Huh?” Severus was caught off-guard while he was drying the ones that are done. “Why the sudden gesture?”

            “I want to do something. Not sex, but something else.”

            “Well, I wouldn’t say no to trying new things. Alright, surprise me then.”

            “You won't be disappointed, Severus,” Harry smiled at him, finishing the last of the dishes and turned to him. “Can we go to bed?”

            “Alright. You still need to a bit more rest anyways,” Severus held out his hand. “Shall we?”

            Harry nodded and took his hand, going to the bedroom. Inside, he opened the curtains to let the moonbeams shine in. He then undressed and pulled the covers back, getting on top of the bed and pulled down covers on his side. Severus felt a little aroused by the sight of Harry being bare, but he promised he wouldn’t go any further until Harry was ready. He undressed as well and followed him.

            “Lay on your side facing me,” Harry instructed.

            Severus did so, interested to find out what this was all about.

            “Touch me, but touch me as if it is the first time you have ever touched me. And nothing arousing. Like this.”

            So saying, Harry reached over and gently stroked Severus’ arm. Severus nodded and did as the boy demonstrated, reaching over and caressing Harry’s cheek, moving his fringe aside. Harry then moved his hand to Severus’ abs, looking lovingly at him, while Severus traced his finger along Harry’s face, from the tip of his forehead to his chin and back up again anti-clockwise, then ran his fingers around Harry’s eyes, nose and lips. Harry closed his eyes and dropped his hand from Severus, feeling the touches on his face, rekindling the feeling of being touched by the man he loved. Severus continued to gently touch him everywhere else, but nothing arousing, until his hand rested on Harry’s baby bump, and in turn, Harry opened his eyes and looked at him lovingly.

            “I love you, Severus,” Harry whispered, leaning in for a chaste kiss.

            “I love you too, Harry,” Severus kissed him back gently. “You and our child.”

            After probably an hour of just gentle chaste kisses and touches, Harry slowly pulled Severus’ arm around himself.

            “Now I want you to hold me.”

            Severus nodded and wrapped his arms around him, holding him close.

            “Feeling better now, Har?”

            “Yes. I just needed to remember that being touched can be nice,” Harry snuggled close. “Thank you.”

            “You’re welcome, my love. You know you can count on me on anything.”

            Harry smiled and closed his eyes, slowly drifting off to sleep, his head rested underneath the older man’s chin and his hand around his waist.

            “Sleep well, love. Tomorrow, you will be back with your real family again,” Severus whispered as he drifted off to sleep as well.


	77. Chapter 77

            Harry’s return to the Snape Manor was a joyful event to everybody. All the hired help welcomed him back with open arms, and Neville and Colin were positively thrilled with seeing their little friend again after so long since they last saw him when Albus took him away. Even those who weren’t that close to him or didn’t really like him initially were happy to see him, even though in not so many words. The Head Housekeeper gave him a welcoming smile and a bit of a cheek ruffle while the cynical gardener himself came up to Harry and gave him a bear hug all of a sudden before shoving him away lightly, muttering “Get outta here” before walking away as if that hug never happened.

            Being that he is pregnant, Severus ordered the hired help to give their assistance to Harry as much as he needed it, and immediately got started on emptying one of the guestrooms to make room for the nursery for their coming child. Severus claimed that all expenses be spared to make the room as perfect as possible, and had even planned together with Harry on sketching a blueprint plan on how their nursery should look like. Neville and Colin were just as excited to be part of witnessing their little friend carrying their future little Young Master in him and even chipped in to contribute ideas for the nursery, in which Colin would occasionally help them decide on baby names, toys and clothes while Neville got anything Harry craved to eat. Severus even arranged with Headmistress Casey have a private tutor just has he and Albus had arranged for Draco to help him move along with the semester and catch up with everyone else, with another extra help from Harry’s little best school friends Aaron, Rach, Becka and Jude who came religiously every other day to share notes and knowledge with him.

            Albus, when he came over to visit his little grandson, updated them on their current efforts to take down the Ministry and to apprehend Lucius. Arming themselves with Lil’s memory of seeing Harry under Lucius’ captivity when she disguised herself as a ragamuffin and approached them in Trinity Vane as evidence, the Aurors, without an official warrant from the Ministry, raided the Malfoy Manor again and arrested Lucius under the charges of suspicion of harbouring a fugitive just like the first time they did when they did their first search at his manor. This time they left no stone unturned as they looked everywhere from top to bottom, every nook and cranny to find any proof of Harry and/or Voldemort ever been to his manor.

            Luck was on their side as they discovered something that Lucius had not expected. Moody, who had always been the eccentric and the unorthodox one of all the Aurors, decided to stray away from his group for a moment and conduct the search the Muggle way, finding things by putting himself in a Muggle police’s shoes. After scouring around the area while the others did it the wizarding way, he had the sudden urge to check under things after his crazy eye detected suspicious aura lingering about. Thanks to that urge, he had discovered a hidden dungeon with the access point right within the fireplace that even Draco himself didn’t know existed. Apparently due to the fact that Aurors relied on too much on magic and not on gut instinct like a proper wizard law-enforcer should, they were blinded by the magic used by Lucius to conceal the door to even notice that it was right there, hidden in plain sight if they’re were to search using the naked eye, although Moody’s crazy eye had something to do with it. After leading the other Aurors to search the dungeons, they have discovered some of Harry’s clothes that he had bought from Trinity Vane and that Lucius would take the boy down there in occasions when Voldemort allowed Lucius’ turn to have his way with him and play out many of his twisted little sick sexual games on him.

            Lucius denied it, of course, when he was shown the clothes, claiming that it was one of the many clothes he made sex slaves that he bought to wear in their foreplay, but one whisper of a spell for a DNA test on the blood that were on the skirt immediately revealed that it belonged to Harry as well as traces of Lucius’ semen. During the interrogation, Lucius refused to admit he had any part with harbouring a fugitive and aiding a criminal to kidnap a minor, and also refused to admit he had anything to do with the massacre that happened in his home that was supposedly done by his wife Narcissa. They had taken care not to question about his involvement in stopping the prophecy so as not to alert the Ministry about them finding out the truth, but judging by the way Lucius not implicating the Ministry of anything as he always did to worm his way out of situations, it is assumed that he, too, was left in the dark about this. Unfortunately, before they could lock him up for an official hearing, they had not counted on Lucius’ desperation and mastery in apparating and when they were not looking, he had quickly apparated out of the interrogation room and was officially branded as the fugitive of the law.

            Thankfully, despite the fact that the Ministry was forced to acknowledge, along with Lil’s memories that was broadcasted through an advanced version of the Pensieve witnessed even by the press, that Lucius indeed have been harbouring a fugitive and taking part in kidnapping and sexually abusing Harry, the Ministry has yet to know of Harry’s rescue and him being under Severus’ custody due to them being too busy trying to track down Lucius. Albus urged Severus and the Order not to speak of it for fear of giving them a chance to reclaim Harry into their custody. Severus, of course, would want nothing of the sort and was very happy to let the Ministry continue assuming that Harry is still under Voldemort’s captivity, and had ordered Sirius under the threat of death (and the threat of exposing the lineage potion family tree) to provide extra protection for his godson Draco and Remus since Lucius was now at large and considered armed and dangerous. Albus ended their secret meeting by saying that at the moment they were cooperating with the Ministry to capture Lucius and subsequently Voldemort, but while they’re doing that, they will secretly collect more evidence to implicate the Ministry on this entire scandal.

            Right now, Severus was anxious to spend another wonderful night together in bed with his beloved and Harry seemed to be taking his time in the bathroom.

            “Pet? You OK in there?”

            “Yeah,” Harry called from behind the bathroom door. “Um…I think I need your help.”

            “What do you wish your Master to do…love?”

            Severus’ grin disappeared and his voice trailed off as he saw that Harry dressed in the corset Lucius had bought for him, along with a pair of silk, almost transparent panties and he was trying to fix the laces that held the corset in place. On the towel rack hung a lingerie of the same colour as the corset that seemed to be ready to be worn later on.

            “What is that?” Severus demanded, pointing at the corset as if it was the most offending thing in the world.

            “Um…a corset?” Harry looked back up at him a little awkwardly, his cheeks a tint of pink. “I need you to lace me up.”

            “W…Where did you get that?”

            “It…came along with me when Lil and Beck rescued me…I just thought…that…”

            “I told you, pet, your life with them is over!” Severus said as he came over to undo the corset. “You’re not a slave anymore! You’re my beloved and soon to be the mother of my child! I thought you understood that!”

            “Then…Then you don’t like me in this…?”

            “What…?” Severus blinked in surprise.

            “I know it sounds crazy but…when Lucius bought this for me…half of me imagined how I would look like and how you would think if I were to wear this for you…” Harry was close to tears at Severus’ initial reaction. “I thought…I might be sexy for you for whatever time remains for my figure before it starts gaining weight…So…D…Don’t I…look sexy?”

            “P…Pet, oh, pet,” Severus knelt down and held him close. “You know you’re sexy to me either way. I don’t care if you would look like a beached whale. You will always be my beautiful little pet.”

            “But…But…” Harry’s tears soon found their way out of his jade-green eyes and down his rosy cheeks as the boy started sobbing.

            “A-Alright, love, alright,” Severus hurriedly helped him with the laces of the corset, knowing that those were the famous mood swing tears the Head Housekeeper had warned him about. Once he was done, he quickly helped Harry put on the lingerie and wiped his tears away. “See? All done now, OK? Please don’t cry, pet,” he stopped to take a look at Harry for a second before smiling a little, “Come to think of it, you do look nice in them, love.”

            “I…I do…?” Harry sniffled, wiping the rest of the tears away.

            “Yeah, and you getting all worked up to try and impress me makes it even cuter.”

            “You…You really think so…?”

            “Oh, I know so,” Severus purred a little as he ran his finger along his ass. Harry finally stopped crying and looked up at him, smiling a little.

            “How do you want the mother of your child to serve you?”

            “Mm…I can’t decide,” Severus said as he swept the boy off his feet and carried him bridal style to the bed. “You look so deliciously wonderful right now.”

            “I think you are a tad over dressed, my Master,” Harry licked his lip and crawled over as soon as he was on the bed, his hips swishing from side to side.

            “Oh yes, silly of me. I’m not dressed for the occasion, or in my case, undressed.”

            Severus immediately magicked his clothes away, making the boy feeling himself getting wet just looking at him. Harry knelt down and rubbed his hands over Severus’ thighs.

            “You’re beautiful, my Master.”

            “Oh yes,” Severus ran his hand along Harry’s ebony tresses, “but not as beautiful as you.”

            “I can’t wait to taste you,” Harry flicked his tongue over the head of his cock. “Mmm, you’re making me wet just from the taste.”

            “Mmh, yes,” Severus cringed at the feeling, hissing in pleasure. “You really know how to tease, love, but are you sure you’re ready for this?”

            Harry responded by smiling and licking his lips before he took him into his mouth.

            “Aah…” Severus let out a pleasurable moan. “Mmh…Yes…Oh yes, I miss your mouth on me.”

            “Mmm…” Harry hummed as he closed his eyes, sucking him slowly, his hand moving down to stroke himself through the panties.

            “Mmh, yes,” Severus started panting erratically as he felt the lovely wet heat around his cock. “You’re very good at this as always.”

            “Do you want to come in my mouth?” Harry pulled off and stroke Severus’ length. “I won’t swallow—I don’t want our baby to eat your come—but I want to taste it. It’s been so long…”

            “Ooh, yes, let me come in your mouth, love. Just don’t stop blowing me,” Severus almost begged, running his fingers through his hair.

            Harry went back to blowing him, moving his hand faster on himself. He moaned around Severus at the taste and the feeling, his heart feeling so much better that he was sucking his beloved’s cock and not Voldemort’s or Lucius’. He had longed for this feeling to return to him, to have Severus’ body and soul with him, his hands along his hair, his voice echoing in his ear, his breath on his skin, everything that was him in his presence.

            “Oh yes, oh yes, keep going…” Severus panted even harder. “F…Faster…I’m…I’m almost there…”

            Harry responded by swallowing him down to the root, fucking his mouth to get that come. A few moments later, Severus almost screamed his approval as he released his load into Harry’s mouth, filling him up. Harry quickly pulled back so Severus came in his mouth and not in his throat. After tasting it for a bit, he sighed in satisfaction and spit it out onto his hand before he reached to clean it up with a tissue, while Severus panted as he tried to stand properly.

            “Mmh, yeah…That was brilliant, love. Did you like my taste there, Har?”

            “Yes,” Harry licked his lips. “Just wish I could have swallowed.”

            “I know,” Severus smiled down at him. “But you know how it is, our little child can’t take my kind of ‘milk’.”

            Harry chuckled and hugged Severus, “I love you, Sev.”

            “I love you too, Harry. So much,” Severus laid Harry on the bed. “Mmm, you look so beautiful.”

            “Can you please help me come?” Harry asked, his panties nearly soaked.

            “Mmh, I’ve been meaning to want to try this when I first saw it,” Severus said as he ran his fingers teasingly through the wet patch where his pussy was. “So, with or without your panties on?”

            “Ah…!” Harry whined. “W…Without, please.”

            “Wow,” Severus breathed as he marveled at the wet pussy once he took off the panties. He then started tracing circles on the swollen clit and grinned at Harry’s reaction. “You’re so wet and so swollen. Who knew you’d be so horny?”

            “It’s your fault. Your cock made me, and I’m only horny for you.”

            “Then I am glad that I turn you on so much, love,” Severus started rubbing the clit hard, with one finger thrusting into him, really taking his time to indulge and experience the new body part his little beloved had.

            “Ah! Sev, fuck me! Please…!”

            “Come for me first,” Severus said. “I want to see it. Let me hear you scream out your first orgasm for me.”

            “Harder! God!”

            Severus responded by finger-fucking him with two of his fingers and leaned down to lick and suck at the clit. Harry soon screamed his orgasm, his body jerked and clenched as he came all over Severus’ hand. Severus quickly leaned down and drank up the boy’s cum greedily, milk him out for more, making the boy scream his approval as he came again. The older man slurped down every last drop before running his tongue along the folds.

            “Mmm…” Severus licked his lips. “So delicious. I never thought you would taste so exquisite. It’s intoxicating. I could just do this to you all night.”

            “Please…” Harry panted. “I want you inside me.”

            “Mmm, yes, my love. I’m going to make you go crazy tonight.”

            Severus rubbed his cock on the wet folds to lube himself up before slowly filling Harry up to the hilt. Harry gasped in pleasure, his body arched up instinctively to meet him.

            “Yes, mmh…Fuck me hard, Severus. I want to feel it.”

            “Your wish is my command, love.”

            After adjusting himself to that lovely soft, wet heat, Severus started a fast and steady rhythm, each thrusts getting closer to the G-spot, in which Harry begged for him to go harder. Severus hissed at the clench of Harry’s pussy. He had had female sex slaves before in his time before and after he had his ex-love, but none of them felt as riveting and wonderful as what he had between his legs, gripping at his cock right now. It was exhilarating, to the point where he almost wished that he could stay buried in this heat forever. When Harry begged him to go harder again, Severus was beyond bliss.

            “Yes, yes, yes…!” Severus groaned as he moved harder n faster, finally hitting the G-spot spot on n assaulting it relentlessly. “I’ll give it to you, all of me…!”

            “GOD! YES RIGHT THERE!”

            Harry twisted and jerked and arched, his body getting close to another orgasm and his hands that gripped the sheets literally ripped it, though he was too drowned in euphoria to realize that. Severus couldn’t care less about the sheet; he was enjoying himself too much. He spread Harry’s legs wider for easier access, pounding into that G-spot as hard as he dared, remembering at the back of his mind that Harry has a baby in there. Soon Harry made another high-pitched scream, squeezing Severus tight as he came on him, his eyes rolling back in his head. The muscles clamped on him so hard, Severus swore he’d squeeze it into a pulp.

            “Damn, yes, that was good! Yes, come for me some more. Go crazy on me!” Severus thrust on the G-spot some more, his hand going down to rub the clit.

            “God, yes!” Harry tossed around as his vagina squeezed again, milking even more out of his body.

            “Oh yes, yes, YES! I’M COMING!!”

            Severus quickly pulled out and bathed Harry’s middle with his come, stream upon stream of it all over him. Harry panted, laying there limp like a noodle, but still more or less awake yet sated. Severus was still hard and ready due to the long disuse since Harry’s kidnapping, and especially since Harry still in his corset turning him on like crazy.

            “Sorry, pet, but I’m not quite done with you yet. Turn around and flip your ass up at me.”

            Harry, trying to muster whatever strength he had, slowly moved into a kneeling position, although in reality, his ass was in the air and his belly up but the rest of his body was on the bed.

            “C…Can I…ask for something…?” Harry whimpered.

            “Yes, pet?” Severus was about to position himself before he was stopped in his tracks by his little beloved’s voice. Harry hesitated a while before shaking his head weakly.

            “Never mind. Forget I said it.”

            “C’mon, pet. You know you can tell me anything.”

            It was probably the longest 30 seconds of Harry’s life before he finally said it.

            “I…want you to double penetrate me.”

            Severus blinked in surprise at that request, “W…Why the sudden gesture?”

            “I…I don’t know. V…Voldemort a…and Lucius made me try it and…it just…I just want _you_ to do it to me, is all…”

            “Are you sure about this?”

            “Please…?” Harry looked up at him pleadingly. “Just do this once…and I’ll never ask of it from you again.”

            Severus, moved by Harry’s cute pleading face, accio-ed the toy he had kept at the bedside drawer for almost forever since Harry was relocated to Kym to study and lubed it up with Harry’s pussy juice, whispering an extra lube spell for good measure before pushing the toy into the boy’s ‘front door’. His cock was wet enough from Harry’s heavy coming and slid it into Harry’s ass in one swift thrust.

            “Ah!” Harry gripped the bed, breathing hard. “Slowly, please. You know that I was…”

            “Sorry, love. You’re just so enticingly sexy that I forgot,” Severus kissed the boy’s back apologetically to calm him down. “I couldn’t hold back. Ready, love?”

            “Yes,” Harry nodded.

            Severus quietly whispered a spell to start off the toy before following its pace, moving in and out of Harry steadily. Hearing the boy hissed his approval, Severus whispered the spell to make the toy thrust a little faster, while he shifted to hit the prostate just right. Harry moved back against the toy and against Severus, begging for the older man to go harder, in which Severus chuckled in compliance, spelling the toy to move harder, making it hit at his G-spot while he fucked his prostate, increasing his pace.

            “Oh God!” Harry arched his back in pleasurable shock at Severus’ cock hitting his prostate and the toy on his G-spot. “I’m gonna come soon…!!”

            “Yes, come. Come as hard as you want. Squeeze ard me again,” Severus groaned in ecstasy as he reached over to tease the clit again, he and the toy moving in perfect rhythm, hitting both the prostate n the G-spot at the same time. Harry soon came again after a few more thrusts both from front and back, his whole body going taught and tight as he came harder than before as he screamed his orgasm. Severus screamed as well at the feeling of Harry’s muscles tightening around him again and assaulted him some more at the perfect spot, making the boy jerk and tightened a little more. Finally, the extra squeeze made Severus lose it as he pulled out, squeezing his cock between Harry’s butt-cheeks and thrust until his seed was literally covering the boy’s back.

            “I…wanted you…to come…inside…me…” Harry whined between breaths.

            “But I thought…” Severus panted as he came down from his high, “I’m not supposed…to come inside…”

            “I think since I’m a pussy boy, it wouldn’t harm the baby if you come inside my butt instead of my pussy. But s’alright. Still good.”

            “Don’t you want to take it out?” Severus asked, his head gestured at the toy that was still inside Harry’s vagina.

            “Yeah,” Harry grinned weakly. “I need to rest.”

            Severus grinned back and whispered a spell for the toy to stop before taking it out, feeling rather glad that Harry was back to his old self again after being held out for so long. It had been so long since they had this much ‘fun’ and it felt almost forever since Harry finally let go of himself and agreed to be more than just held and cuddled to sleep. He was afraid that the trauma he had experience would deter the boy from ever having sex with him again, but seeing that Harry had gone through all this trouble to dress up and turn him on, he knew things would be back the way they were supposed to be.

            “How is the first time taking me after so long, Sev?” Harry rolled on to his back once the older man helped him clean it off.

            “Mmh, wonderful. So wonderful,” Severus crawled over to nuzzle him. “How does it feel letting me take you?”

            “Mmm, very good. So much better than what I have been through. I have missed you so much, though I better not tell my Master or he would get jealous.”

            “Oh? Really now?” Severus smirked, knowing all too well that tone meant Harry was in one of his naughty role-plays as his hand came over to tweak his nipples “What will he do if he finds out?”

            “He might get mad,” Harry licked his lips. “I don’t want that.”

            “Oh? Will he do this to you?” Severus tweaked some more, squeezing the nipples a little harder.

            “Mmm, maybe. Or he might spank me.”

            “Oh ho, really now? Then your Master _has_ found out and he will punish you,” Severus chuckled as he picked Harry up by the legs and rested his ass on his lap.

            “Ah! Master, I can explain~!” Harry whined playfully, getting into the roleplaying.

            “There is nothing to explain, my slave. You have betrayed me for another. You will be punished.” Severus was getting into the role-play too as he raised the boy’s legs high until the ass was showing, then started spanking him as hard as he dared.

            “I can’t help it. Ow! His cock felt so good.”

            “You prefer his cock rather than your master?” Severus slaps some more, careful not to go too hard. “Such a naughty boy, yes, you are.”

            “I like both your cocks. Ah!” Harry was beginning to go wet again, but at the same time, tears were starting to form. “Forgive me, Master. I couldn’t help it.”

            “Beg, my little slave. Beg for mercy,” Severus slapped a bit more, alternating between cheeks.

            “Please, Master. Forgive me. It hurts. I’m sorry…” Harry whined, more tears flowing, though he tried to hide them. It was stinging but nothing he couldn’t handle, and it wasn’t really the pain that was making him cry. “Please take your pleasure in me. Forgive me.”

            “Oh yes, I most definitely will. I am going to punish you good n proper.”

            So saying, Severus took the toy again and lubed it up real good before slowly inching it into Harry, this time in his ass.

            “Ah, M-Master…” Harry whined as he felt the toy fill up his backdoor. “Punish me; I have been a naughty boy.”

            “Yes, I will. You naughty boy will be taught a proper lesson.”

            With that, the older man started up the toy to thrust him, but instead of putting himself into Harry’s pussy, he used his fingers to rub the clit instead. Harry wriggled and whined in protest, wanting Severus inside him but the man gave him no quarter, continuing his diddling until the boy was literally begging for it before he replaced his fingers with himself, entering him in one thrust until the tip of his cock and Harry’s G-spot met.

            “Yes…!” Harry moaned. “Please fuck me and I will never cheat again.”

            “I will fuck you so hard you will never think of any other man ever again.”

            Severus soon spelled the toy to move faster and deeper and matched its speed, attacking the G-spot again and again, making the boy scream his approval as he put his arm around Severus’ neck, his nails digging in. Severus had his legs over Harry’s thighs, careful not to put his weight on the boy, and bent his knees before fucking him nice and deep as he was allowed to, increasing the power of the toy as well to assault his prostate, making the boy scream at the top of his lungs, his body coming closer and closer to the edge.

            “Oh yes, mmh!! You will want no one but me! You will have no one’s cock but mine! _All mine_!” Severus roared a little possessively as he jabbed him over and over again along with the toy.

            “Yes, yes, yes! I will…!! OH GOD! I’m COMING…!!!”

            Harry soon came all over Severus’ cock and squeezed tight, making Severus thrust even harder to milk him out to make him come some more. At probably the umpteenth time, Harry came for the last time his sluggish body could allow before Severus finally lost it and pulled out, coming all over his middle again and his thighs. As the older man’s tremors died down, he took out the toy before lying down beside him breathlessly and finally noticed that the tears that Harry shed was nowhere near due to lust. Worriedly he turned the boy’s head to face him and looked straight in the eye.

            “Are you OK, pet? Did I hurt you?”

            “Are you…Are you satisfied now…?” Harry whimpered, knowing that his cover was blown. “Do you really…forgive me now…?”

            It took Severus a while to connect all the dots before he realized what was this all about.

            “D…Did you do this because you wish to atone for you being with…?”

            Harry’s nod confirmed his question, his tears poured out even more as he let loose a string of sobs.

            “Oh, pet…Pet…” Severus held him close and stroked him. “I told you already, none of this is your fault. I am not angry with you.”

            “But…But…I feel so dirty…with their…essence in me…I…I wanted to be cleansed by you…I wanted you to punish me…!! I…”

            “Shh…Shh…Shh…” Severus rocked the boy to and fro, comforting him. “There is nothing to forgive. All is fine, pet. Don’t blame yourself anymore. Please be strong. Our child needs you, and I need you. I will never, ever leave you or let you go through this ever again. I swear it. It is never your fault. Never has been, never will be. You are not dirty. You are my pet and the mother of my child. You are my everything. I love you, Harry, from the moment I saw you. I love you from the bottom of my heart. Please, pet…”

            Harry didn’t feel too convinced, but hearing those comforting words was enough to wash his guilt for now. Severus noticed that too and lifted the boy’s head to make him look into his dark orbs, saying those 5 meaningful words that he had wanted to say for the longest time.

            “Will you marry me, Harry?”


	78. Chapter 78

            “Remus, you’re needed at the backyard with Master Black.”

            Remus looked up from the book he was reading to Draco and their unborn twins at Paprika in surprise as the Spanish-decent maid came in bearing the news from Sirius. Ever since she and Sirius have officially got back into ‘good graces’, so to speak, she had dressed a lot less skimpier than before and looked much cheerier than she used to. In fact, she claimed to be much at ease with her reinstated position as Sirius’ sex slave rather than just a personal slave that does menial tasks around the house, and that Sirius had been slightly more lenient and less defensive ever since that heart-to-heart talk he had with Severus and also since finding out about the prophecy and the Ministry scandal. Draco personally felt it was probably that excess energy was spent on the Order, but seeing Paprika that happy to see such changes, thinking it to be of her involvement, who was he to deny it?

            “What does Master Black need me for?” Remus asked.

            “Dunno,” Paprika shrugged. “Something about the pack at the forests at the backyard or something. Either way, he needs your help.”

            “Alright. Tell him I’ll be there ASAP.”

            Paprika nodded and left. Remus caressed Draco’s belly and planted butterfly kisses on it for a while before getting off the bed, putting the book aside. Draco watched as Remus put on his pants—since he was only dressed in a thin shirt and boxers—and pouted a little.

            “Do you have to go? You’re my slave. You can always ignore him and say I won’t let you go.”

            “Don’t be that way, love,” Remus smiled and kissed his lips. “It’s not nice to be selfish. He’s still your uncle after all. Besides, he could provide me some updates on the Order and their progress on taking down the Ministry. Will you stay inside?”

            “OK,” Draco sighed. “But will you be alright?”

            “Don’t worry. I can take good care of myself. Half-werewolf, remember? I doubt your Uncle Siri can do much damage on me.”

            “Don’t be long?” Draco looked up at him cutely, sitting up slowly.

            “I won’t, love,” Remus kissed his cheek and changed into a thicker, warmer shirt than what he was wearing before grabbing a coat. “Remember stay inside, OK? Anything, you just holler. My ears can hear you clearly.”

            “OK,” Draco replied as he snuggled in the covers to keep warm from the still chill of early spring. “I love you, Remy.”

            “I love you too, my mate.”

            Draco smiled and watched Remus leave the room, giving him a flying kiss in the process. He stayed in the covers until he was warm enough before getting off, wrapping the nice, comfy soft covers around him to protect himself from the cold, to double-check and see if he was really called by Remus to be with Sirius at the backyard. His worries were eased when he saw that Remus was indeed with Sirius, talking inaudibly from his point of view before making their way to the forests behind. A cold shiver ran down his spine as the memory of meeting Fenrir Greyback and the close call encounter that followed resurfaced in his mind. He was never going to set foot on that place ever again, that was for sure, and if he absolutely had to, he was not going to go in there alone.

            Wrapped with a thick trench-coat for extra warmth, he went downstairs to the kitchen and decided to prepare some hot chocolate for Remus’ and Sirius’ return, with a little help from the hired help to locate the drinks. He usually wouldn’t bother to think about Sirius’ wellbeing but since Paprika claimed him to be less testy than before, he’d give him the benefit of the doubt and start treating him like a real family member. He had to admit even though he was a bit of a cranky old bugger, he was probably the only family he has got that he could trust in keeping him safe from the dangers of the Ministry and his father, and so far, he had kept his word and his end of the bargain, so there wasn’t really any reason for him to behave like he was the plague.

            Suddenly a loud crash burst through the kitchen door that led to the backyard, startling everyone. Draco was shocked to see a rather bedraggled but more or less standing form of Lucius at the totaled door, grinning evilly at him. The hired help instinctively came to shield their little Young Master from harm, but with a flick of a wand from the older blonde sent them flying in all directions, leaving the younger blonde with nothing but a pan to arm himself because he had left his wand upstairs in the room.

            “W…What are you doing here?!” Draco exclaimed. “H…How did you know I’m here?!”

            “I had my suspicions when Black refused to admit having you here,” Lucius growled as he came close to him, his wand brandished forward. “Now that I am more or less free to do as I please without having to babysit that diabolical psychopath, I came here to confirm my suspicions. Lo and behold, I see my son here,” Lucius was close enough to press the tip of the wand against Draco’s shoulder, “with the black sheep of the family looking like a beached whale with my _grandchildren_!”

            “Get out of my house!!” Draco, out of reflex, hit at the older blonde, but missed and his pan magicked away to the floor.

            “I see you’ve made yourself very at home here, it seems, but not anymore! You’re coming with me to have these abominations in you dealt with!”

            A struggle ensued as the two blondes fought for dominance. The hired help who were knocked away tried to come to their Young Master’s rescue but it seemed that Lucius had cast himself some sort of protection shield charm on himself beforehand because they ended up ricocheting and thrown back whenever they tried to get close. Draco struggled to push his father away, to try and get out of harm’s way and be anywhere but within his father’s grasp, but Lucius was giving him no quarter. At the older man’s last attempt to subdue him, he shouted a Levitation spell on his son and tried to knock him out by ramming the boy against something hard to hit his head, but he was slightly distracted when another of the hired help ricocheted off him and made him drop the younger blonde onto the floor. Draco’s eyes widened as he suddenly felt the sharp pain in his belly from the fall. He started to tear up, knowing instinctively what was wrong, earning a cruel laugh from Lucius as he, too, knew what just happened.

            Just as he was about to accio something heavy to finish the job, Remus and Sirius suddenly came crashing through the scene, led by Paprika. Apparently Paprika, who had seen the commotion, quickly made a break for the forest where Remus and Sirius were and hollered for them at a safe distance, and thankfully was caught by Remus’ sharp hearing. Without a second’s notice, Remus growled and lunged for Lucius but suffered the ricochet of the protection shield charm in the process. Draco sobbed as he cowered to a corner, clutching his belly as it started to hurt real bad, while Sirius brandished out his wand, shouting out a blood-contract incantation that was reserved for only his bloodline as the Ancient House of Black that enabled him the power to neutralize any spells cast within the vicinity for a limited amount of time at the price of a portion of his blood. Remus quickly took advantage of Lucius’ shield down and fought with the older blonde for the longest time until he successfully subdued him with a strong oral hold on the back of his neck and a very firm half-nelson. Sirius ordered Paprika to make the call to the Order and quickly cast Lucius a Body-Bind curse to hold him there until help arrives.

            “Drake?” Remus stood up and turned towards Draco, his nose bloody but otherwise OK.

            “R…Remy…? Gods, no…Our babies…Amarinth…Abigail…” Draco sobbed incoherently as he cringed in a fetal position, trying to hold onto the pain, his water broken and leaking between his legs.

            “Oh Merlin, Drake!!” Remus quickly picked Draco in his arms, almost hyperventilating as he saw his little beloved going into labour. “M…Master Black…! M…My cubs…!!”

            “Take him to his room. I’ll ring Sinistra,” Sirius said as he gestured some of the hired help to keep a watchful eye on Lucius.

            Remus nodded and did as he was told, trying his best to be strong for Draco, who looked like he was about to cry a storm. Moments later, Prof. Sinistra and her mother Mrs. Sinistra came in, led by Sirius and Paprika after being briefed of what just happened. As Draco sobbed, letting out a yelp as he felt a contraction, Mrs. Sinistra felt him up before rushing for her tools.

            “He has to give birth now,” Mrs. Sinistra announced. “A little ahead of schedule but we have no choice in this matter now. The twins are good to go.”

            “It will be OK, Drake, it’ll be OK,” Remus comforted Draco when the latter let out a worried whimper.

            “Do you need my help, Mother?” Prof. Sinistra asked as she helped prepare the necessities.

            “Yes, I need you to assist me in catching the baby,” Mrs. Sinistra said, then turned to Sirius. “You, on the other hand, stay by his side.”

            “What?! Me?!” Sirius exclaimed incredulously. “Why me?! I’ve got nothing to do with this!”

            “Because he is your nephew and he’s going to need all the support. And I’m gonna need some warm water and towels as well.”

            “I’ll get it, ma’am,” Paprika offered and gave Sirius a pleading look before leaving.

            “It’s too soon…It’s too soon…” Draco sobbed painfully. “Oh gods, please let my babies be OK…”

            “Easy there, lil’ Dray, easy,” Mrs. Sinistra comforted as she put on the surgical gloves. “Remy boy, I want you to make him go on his knees and hold him up. Giving birth kneeling down is the best way with the help of gravity.”

            “Come on, Drake, up on your knees,” Remus nodded and tried to help him up, giving the same pleading look to Sirius that Paprika gave him. Sirius rolled his eyes and groaned in defeat before he got on Draco’s other side and helped both of them. Draco sobbed as he was helped up on his knees and yelped as another contraction hit, in which Mrs. Sinistra felt Draco up again.

            “OK, you’re fully dilated now. Listen, lil’ Dray, when I count to three, you must push along with the contractions, OK? Don’t fight it. Push along with it, you hear me?”

            Draco nodded in his tears, even though he was not sure whether he could do this.

            “You can do this, Drake,” Remus kissed the young blonde’s brow. “I am not leaving you ever again.”

            “OK, on the count of 3,” Mrs. Sinistra coached. “One…two…three, push!”

            Draco soon felt a contraction and bore down as hard as he could along with it, tears staining his cheeks.

            “Very good, lil’ Dray. That’s very good. Keep it coming.”

            “Come, Drake, come on!” Remus encouraged, while Sirius looked on quietly, concentrating on supporting Draco.

            “Oh god, oh god,” Draco whined as he pushed along with another contraction. “OH GOD, IT HURTS!!”

            “I know it does, but you need to get the babies out, love.”

            “It’ll be over soon,” Mrs. Sinistra assured the young ‘mother’. “Just keep pushing with the contractions.”

            Draco did so, feeling like every time he pushed, thousands of invisible knives were cutting through him from the belly down. He wondered at the back of his mind whether this was how it felt to be hit with the Cruciatus curse, even though he heard stories from his mother that it was worse than that. Remus tried to comfort him and stroked his back to try whatever he could to ease his pain, but it broke his heart to see that Draco was in pain, breaking into cold sweat and tears flowing freely from his silver eyes, and there was nothing he could do to take that pain away. Sirius felt a little out of place looking at his little nephew like this. One side of him told him that this was a natural process of childbirth, that he shouldn’t concern himself with this and just play along with it, but the other side of him was feeling sympathy pains for Draco somehow and he was really fighting the urge to just run away and flee from this horrifying scene.

            “Push, lil’ Dray, push,” Mrs. Sinistra coached. “You’re on a roll, luv, just keep up the pace.”

            Draco pushed down again when he felt another contraction and widened his eyes suddenly as he felt the baby crowning between his legs.

            “FUCK, FUCK, FUCK!!!” Draco screamed, the pain from the pushing increasing tenfolds.

            “One of cubs are right there, Drake,” Remus coaxed as he tried to keeping Draco from doubling over. “Just a bit more. Please, Drake.”

            “Alright, just keep pushing. I got the head now,” Mrs. Sinistra held onto the baby’s head, her daughter at the ready with a towel. “You just push while I try to pull it out, OK, lil’ Dray?”

            Draco tossed his head from side to side as he pushed down, biting his lip till it bled. Remus pressed his lip out of his mouth and took Draco’s hand.

            “Squeeze my hand, Drake. I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

            “OH GOD, OH GOD!!” Draco cried out with abandon; he could feel the shoulders coming out now as Mrs. Sinistra helped to pull it out.

            “Just one more push, lil’ Dray. Give it a big one.”

            Draco screamed as he bore down, his legs trembling at the pain as the baby soon slid out, in which Mrs. Sinistra immediately caught the baby.

            “There ya go!” Mrs. Sinistra exclaimed as she passed the baby to Prof. Sinistra. “Here, love. Massage and clap the back. Help the baby to breathe.”

            Prof. Sinistra took her, doing as she was told, while Remus kissed Draco’s forehead over and over again, congratulating him.

            “One down, Drake, one down.”

            “Is…Is she OK…? Is Abigail…OK?”

            “She’s beautiful, lil’ Dray,” Mrs. Sinistra smiled. “Ten fingers and ten toes. My daughter is helping her to breath now.”

            “Hear that, my mate?” Remus kissed him again. “Abigail is perfect.”

            Draco yelped suddenly before he even had a chance to smile at the news as the contraction came back again. He whined. He had barely rested from the first one. Mrs. Sinistra quickly came into position.

            “Alright now, your little Amarinth is asking to born. Abigail has paved the way. It should be easier.”

            “No, no, no~!” Draco whimpered as he shook his head in protest. “I can’t do it~! It hurts~!”

            “Draco,” Remus grabbed his face. “My mate, you have to. I will never ask you to do anything else.”

            Draco whined and shook his head. _Anything but this,_ his mind begged. _Anything but this, please~!_

            “C’mon, lil’ Dray. Amarinth needs to be born. You have to let her out.”

            Seeing that there was no way out of this, Draco surrendered to his fate. He took a few deep breaths and waited for another contraction, in which it came, but at such renewed ache that it made Draco scream and almost fall back, and would have done so if Remus and Sirius hadn’t held onto him.

            “FUCK!!! REMY, REMY~!! MAKE IT STOP~!! MAKE IT STOP~!!!”

            “He’s gonna bite his tongue!” Mrs. Sinistra exclaimed. “Quick, stuff something in his mouth!”

            Without thinking, Sirius somehow instinctively took off his belt and handed it to Remus, in which the half-wolf stuffed it into the young blonde’s mouth and took his head to face him.

            “Draco, you need to do this. Amarinth needs to be born. I know it hurts. Next time I will take the brunt of the pain and give birth to the baby. Please do this for Amarinth.”

            Looking deep into Remus’ amber eyes, Draco knew he spoke the truth and slowly calmed down from soothing effects of the half-wolf’s stare. He nodded tearfully and finally started pushing along with the contractions, bombarded by encouragement from every party, even occasional ones from Sirius.

            “That’s very good, lil’ Dray. Keep it coming!”

            “You can do it, Drake. I’m here for you.”

            “You’re a strong boy, Draco. You can do it. You’re almost there.”

            “Just keep at it, boy. Get it over and done with.”

            Draco widened his eyes again and let out a muffled scream through the belt as he felt the baby crowning faster, and it was Mrs. Sinistra’s cue to take the head.

            “There ya go, there ya go. It’s coming now. Just a few more pushes, lil Dray.”

            “Harder, Drake. Harder,” Remus urged.

            Draco hit at Remus’ chest and wailed almost in angered pain, as if trying to tell him that was what he was trying to do, and bit on the belt hard as he pushed down with all his might. Sirius held back a grin as Remus took the hand and squeezed it gently and hushed Draco up while Mrs. Sinistra tried to ease the baby out.

            “You’re doing very good, lil’ Dray. Keep it coming. The shoulders are almost out.”

            Draco let out muffled wail after wail at the excruciating pain as he felt the shoulders inching out of him.

            “Just one more push, lil’ Dray. Give it a big one. Give it all you got.”

            Draco panted heavily before leaning back a little against Remus’ arm, screaming out loud as he gave his biggest push ever. It was almost blessed relief as the blonde could feel the lump slid out from between his legs as Mrs. Sinistra caught the baby.

            “There ya go! Here’s comes Amarinth! Congratulations!”

            “Oh, Drake, it’s our other girl,” Remus kissed his beloved’s cheek. “Thank you, Drake, thank you so much.”

            Draco let the belt fall out of his mouth as he felt his whole body wobbly and numb from the pain. He didn’t care if he was a teary, drooling, sweaty mess. All he wanted was to lie down and have his little girls in his arms.

            “Lie him down, Remy boy. Both of you help me massage lil’ Dray’s belly, help him get the afterbirth out,” Mrs. Sinistra instructed as she massaged and clapped Amarinth’s back for her to breathe.

            Remus nodded and laid Draco down on the bed and rubbed his belly as instructed.

            “Very good work there, boy,” Sirius grinned as he helped Remus, who couldn’t stop kissing Draco’s cheek, to massage the afterbirth out.

            “B…Baby…” Draco whined, panting tiredly. “Where…Where’s Abigail…and…Amarinth…? I…don’t hear them cry…”

            His questions were answered as soon as he heard the twin girls’ cries rang through the room after the Sinistra mother and daughter cut the umbilical cords and massaged and clapped both the babies’ back to get them to breath.

            “There ya go,” Mrs. Sinistra beamed proudly. “You’re a fighter, aren’t ya, you little cubbies?”

            “Can we see them?” Remus asked.

            “Of course, but for a while,” Prof. Sinistra replied with a smile as she handed over the squalling twins to Remus.

            “My babies…My babies…” Draco whimpered, holding out his hand for them.

            “Our cubs,” Remus smiled, letting Draco take on in trembling arms.

            “Oh…Oh, my baby…” Draco kissed the baby over and over again, crying happy tears, his pain instantly forgotten as he studied both their features. They were darling little girls, like mini female versions of Remus with golden locks on their heads just like their ‘mother’. They even revealed to have their father’s eyes when they opened them a little to peek at their parents, tiny beads of tears clinging onto their lashes. Just as Mrs. Sinistra assured them, they were perfectly healthy, with ten fingers and ten toes, and after they calmed down some from their crying once they were in their ‘mother’s arms, they let out a yawn, obviously tired out from being put through a wringer like that.

            “Oh, Drake,” Remus kissed his head as he cooed at Abigail in his arms. “You were so good.”

            “I wouldn’t have done it without you, Remy,” Draco said, smiling weakly through his tears. “I thought I would’ve died.”

            “But you didn’t. You lived through it, love.”

            “They…They look so beautiful…They look just like you, but with my hair…”

            “Beautiful. Hello, Abigail, Amarinth, we have been waiting.”

            While the new parents ogled at their newborns, Sirius took his leave and went to deal with Lucius. The Order sent forth Kingsley and Moody to have Lucius be taken to the Ministry to be dealt with. After exchanging news about their progress in hushed quick tones so that Lucius would not overhear them, the two Aurors quickly took over and had custody over Lucius, Floo-ing him away from Grimmauld’s Place. While all that was happening, Remus kissed Draco for the umpteenth time before turning to Mrs. Sinistra.

            “Will Draco lactate and feed the babies or do we have to bottle feed?”

            “Well,” Mrs. Sinistra checked on Draco, “it seems his breasts are starting to swell. I predict that he will start breastfeeding by the day after tomorrow.”

            Draco blushed at the thought of having boobs, in which Mrs. Sinistra chuckled heartily.

            “Oh, don’t worry, once the babies are weaned, they will shrink back to normal. In the meantime, I'd like to have those babies, please.”

            Remus chuckled at Draco as well and whispered into his ear, “I wouldn’t mind a taste either.”

            “Why would you want them?” Draco glared at Remus with a blush and a pout before looking at Mrs. Sinistra worriedly when she requested for the babies.

            “They’re still premature, and needs to be incubated for the rest of the period,” Mrs. Sinistra replied as she requested Paprika to bring her a box of sorts, in which the slave did and came back with a small trunk. She transfigurated the small trunk into a glass container in which she whispered a warmth spell. “We’ll have to put them here, luv.”

            Draco whined and shook his head, holding the baby in his arms possessively.

            “Will they be OK?” Remus asked.

            “Don’t worry,” the old midwife reassured the couple. “They just need to be in an environment where they develop their growth as they should have if they’re carried full term. You can still take them out to breastfeed them, luv.”

            “It’s ok, Drake. They need to grow more,” Remus stroked Draco’s shoulder, persuading him to allow the midwife to do her job.

            Draco shook his head again, tears forming in his eyes. He didn’t spend almost forever trying to get them out only to have them taken away from him.

            “Drake, please. It’s for the babies. We can still see them.”

            No matter how much he wanted to keep the babies in his arms, he knew Mrs. Sinistra and Remus were right. Abigail and Amarinth needed to grow into their full-term state and the glass container was the only way to do so. Draco whimpered in defeat and reluctantly passed the baby he was holding to Remus, in which the half-wolf passed them to Mrs. Sinistra.

            “They will be ok, right?” Remus asked, still a little worried.

            “Yes, of course. In fact, I would advise Draco to watch over the babies. They need to be as close proximity as possible.” Mrs. Sinistra replied as she placed them one by one into the glass container and levitated it right beside the bed. “Here you go. They’re just right here.”

            Draco ran his fingers along the glass, staring at the babies longingly, feeling the warmth of the container due to the spell and knew in his heart that this warmth was to imitate the warmth the babies felt when they were in his womb, totally oblivious that Prof. Sinistra and her mother were helping him to get cleaned up, changed and dressed in fresh clothes and lying on fresh sheets with the assistance of Paprika. Once they were done tending to Draco and the babies as well, Mrs. Sinistra and Prof. Sinistra gave their last congrats before they took their leave. Remus and Paprika sent them off before Remus returned to tend to his beloved and his cubs.

            “I think I have been replaced,” Remus chuckled and sat down next to Draco.

            “It happens,” Paprika chuckled as well while she collected all the dirty sheets, towels and the basin of water before walking out with them, leaving the two new parents alone.

            “Not true,” Draco pouted.

            “You’ve done really well, my love,” Remus said as he nuzzled Draco. “What beautiful cubs we have.”

            “They are,” Draco smiled as well. “I would do anything for him and my cubs.”

            “So will I, Drake.”

            “Umm…You don’t really mean it when you said you’ll take the brunt of the pain and bear the children next time, right?”

            “Yes, I do. If you want more, I will bottom for you and give them to you. Why? You don’t think I can do it?”

            “I never said that,” Draco laughed and pinched Remus’ nose. “It’s just gonna be weird seeing you sporting a pregnant belly, and besides, I’d hate to endure your mood swings since I knew mine was damaging enough.”

            “Well, you’ll never know till we tried now, will you?”

            Draco grinned in both anticipation and dread at the possibilities of Remus shouldering the child-bearing. He turned to look at the twin girls who were all tuckered in their baby clothes and sleeping peacefully with their newly bought pacifiers in their mouths and remembered.

            “Wh…What will they do with my father?”

            “That is for them to decide,” Remus replied almost grudgingly. “If it were for me, I would’ve snapped his neck there and then and be done with it for harming you and the cubs.”

            “I would hate you if you do that. You will end up in Azkaban for murder charges and…well…he’s still my father, no matter how evil he is.”

            “That kind of monster doesn’t deserve to be our cubs’ grandfather, let alone your father.”

            “But…” Draco wanted to object but he couldn’t control a yawn escaping his mouth.

            “Get some rest. You have worked hard today.”

            “O…K…” Draco closed his eyes and soon drifted off, dead tired from the ordeal.

            Remus smiled and kissed Draco’s forehead, tucking him in before running his hands along the warm glass container, looking at his precious little jewels.

            “Grow up big and strong, my little cubs. Daddy’s gonna protect you with every ounce of his being, that I swear.”


	79. Chapter 79

            “Oh, they are just so adorable, Draco~!”

            Draco chuckled as Harry ogled at the babies in the glass container. Remus came in with the drinks and handed one to Harry.

            “They’re still a little underweight and small,” Remus commented. “But a couple of months in this make-shift incubator and a healthy diet of their ‘mother’s milk, they’ll be as right as rain in no time.”

            “Wow!” Harry looked at Draco in both teasingly and in awe. “You actually have boobs?”

            “Not exactly proud of it,” Draco blushed, giving him a ‘Quit it’ look then chuckled. “But it’s essential for the twins’ health, which speak of the devil…”

            Just as Draco said, the little girls started to whimper for their ‘mother’s milk. Draco gently sat up and lifted the top of the glass container and took them out carefully one by one. Remus quickly reached over to help Draco undo his shirt, which revealed his A-sized breasts behind sports bra. After Remus helped the younger blonde raise his sports bra, Draco brought the hungry squalling babies to his nipples and they immediately started sucking powerfully.

            “Wow, that is fascinating,” Harry commented as he watched Draco nursed the twins. “I wonder if that would happen to me.”

            “Maybe, maybe not,” Draco replied. “Who knows? But I put high stakes on it happening.”

            Harry looked a little pale thinking about it, making Remus chuckle.

            “I think whatever happens to your body, Har, you would still be a good ‘mother’, and that Master Snape will love you just the same.”

            “Thanks, Remy,” Harry smiled as he habitually stroke his growing belly.

            “How’s the baby doing there, Har?” Draco asked.

            “Very well,” Harry giggled. “In fact, I just had my last check-up and Ard-Rí Constantine said the baby and I are fine. Sev, on the other hand, seemed to be more anxious and has more mood swings than I am, almost like he’s the pregnant one instead of me.”

            “Seriously?” Draco looked at him in almost disbelief.

            “Yeah. Like he’s the one going to give birth in 6 months time. But,” Harry smiled as he shrugged, “I find it sweet. It shows that he cares very much about us. In fact, his sympathy pains actually calms my own mood swings, and also ease my worries on Voldemort possibly tracking me down and plotting to attack me. Sev’s thinking it could be a girl, but I’m aiming for a boy.”

            “Gut instincts is always right, Har. I proved Remy wrong on our twins’ gender.”

            “Speaking of which, how goes the case?” Remus asked as he helped Draco put the babies into the glass container as soon as they were fed and burped. “Since Master Snape and I have being relieved of duty from the Order, have there been any updates so far?”

            “Unfortunately no,” Harry sighed as he tickled one of the girls’ cheek before Remus closed the lid. “Grandpa Albus is keeping a tight lip on this so that no one would end up listening to our conversation, especially the Ministry. I heard from Ron who heard it from his dad that they’re pretty jumpy right now ever since your father was brought in for prosecution.”

            “They should,” Draco rolled his eyes. “After what they did to us, that’s the least of their problems.”

            “I just hope this thing gets over and done with quick because I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that you and I are part of a life-changing prophecy.”

            “You got that right, Har. I mean I know I was meant for better things than being the slave of my family’s ideology, but this is just wicked.”

            “Tell me about it. You’re not the only ones befuddled here,” Remus replied in agreement, raising his hand. “And I’m sure Master Snape feels the same way.”

            “We’re a little overwhelmed about this, I’m sure,” Harry sighed. “But like my friend Jude said: If fate meant for something to happen, then there’s no stopping it. We’re often meant to do something in our lives somehow, big or small.”

            “Though we definitely didn’t expect this,” Draco sighed as well, running his fingers along the glass container, casting a longing glance at his little babies.

            “I guess we’ll just have to go along with the ride and…”

            “So this must be my little grand-nieces.”

            Everyone looked up to see Severus entering the room, first coming towards Harry to give him a kiss before looking closely at the twins. The twins opened their eyes for a while to peek at Severus when he gently tapped the container to get their attention, then yawned and went back to sleep again.

            “They look just like you, Lupin,” Severus commented. “Only with Drake’s hair and eyes.”

            “A lot of people say that,” Remus replied sheepishly.

            “Oh, Remy,” Draco chuckled as he smacked Remus’ shoulder playfully. “He meant that as a compliment, love.”

            “How’s it doing for you there, Sev?” Harry asked. “I hope your customers were not angry for holding out on them and on a long hiatus.”

            “They’ll get over it,” Severus waved it away. “I just need to make their potions better than they expected and they forgot about why they were angry for waiting so long in the first place.”

            “Just as I expected from you, love.”

            The quartet engaged in small talk for a couple hours—although Severus was also more or less in the dark about the updates on the Order’s progress—before Harry decided that they have outstayed their welcome and made his leave with the older man. Remus sent them off before returning to see that Draco had started to nurse the twins again. Draco had been warned by Mrs. Sinistra that mother’s milk, despite the fact that it packed the nutrients the children needed most and best to be weaned off it at their age of 1, are usually not as filling as formula milk, so the twins would probably get hungry faster. So as soon as he heard the twins started whimpering, he took one of them in his arms and almost immediately maternal instincts kicked in as he carried her close, undid his shirt, raised one side of his sports bra and guided her mouth to his nipples.

            “That is hot, Drake,” Remus chuckled as he leaned close to see it was Abigail feeding.

            “Keep your pants on, Remy. It’s just breastfeeding,” Draco pouted with a blush. “I still can’t believe I’m sporting boobs now.”

            “Well, it does have its advantages other than feeding our cubs,” Remus laughed when Draco gave him a glare. “I can’t help it, Drake. I think you are very hot now.”

            “Sorry, but until I’m fully rested and my birth canal disappears 100%, you’re not having me,” Draco replied as he continued to feed Abigail. “Mind bringing over Amarinth as well, please? She’s wailing her head off.”

            “I guess I will be dating my hand for a while,” Remus sighed exaggeratedly as he picked up Amarinth out of the glass container and gave her to Draco. Draco raised the other side of the sports bra to his other daughter and let her feed along with her sister, earning a groan of arousal from Remus.

            “OK, OK, Amarinth. Shh…” Draco ignored that groan. “Here you go.”

            “Could you at least suck me once in a while?”

            There was a long pause before a healthy tint flushed past Draco’s cheeks.

            “I might. But not until I’m done feeding.”

            Remus grinned happily and tried not to look at Draco for fear of losing his self-control and jumping the poor blonde right there and then. Soon, the babies were all done feeding. He burped them like Mrs. Sinistra taught him how and put them back into the container, cooing cutely at them with his shirt still undone and the sports bra still raised, his boobs sticking out a little. Remus licked his lips; he desperately wanted to feast on those nipples. He didn’t know why, but Draco was really making him turned on right now, and having him in that state was not exactly helping matters. Draco tucked the babies in before he noticed the hunger on Remus’ face and grinned.

            “Looks like someone’s hungry for Mommy’s milk too.”

            “I want you so bad, my love,” Remus whined, leaning in to kiss him on the cheeks and neck.

            “I’m sorry I can’t. Mrs. Sinistra said I’m not ready yet.”

            “I know, Drake,” Remus sighed. “Don’t worry. I’ll live…somehow.”

            “But I’m not averse to giving you Mommy’s milk.”

            So saying, Draco showed his A-sized boobs to him with a grin. Remus smiled deeply, almost from ear to ear, and leaned down to kiss his nipple. Draco trembled at the touch of his lips.

            “Mm…does Baby want Mommy’s milk?”

            “Yes, please,” Remus leaned down to take one in his mouth, suckling on it, the mild taste of musky milk lingered at the tip.

            “Aah…! Mmh…!” Draco was feeling rather sensitive after the feeding. “Yes, drink Mommy’s milk, Baby. It’s good for you.”

            Remus moved down from his chest to his navel, licking and sucking the skin. He made his way to Draco’s cock and held it between his hands.

            “Now this is my kind of ‘milk’.” Remus grinned, making Draco’s breath hitched at the touch.

            “Ahh…! Mmh…god, I miss this…”

            “I missed you,” Remus whispered, licking the tip, tasting Draco’s cock for all its worth.

            “Mmh…!” Draco shivered at the lick, then realized they were in the same room with the babies in the makeshift incubator and accio-ed a towel to cover it and cast a silencing charm on it before levitating it a few feet away from them. “Don’t wanna traumatize them now.”

            “Sorry, Drake. I nearly forgot about them,” Remus chuckled sheepishly, but he went on in his task of pleasuring him.

            “Oh…” Draco shivered as he ran his fingers through Remus’ hair. “Oh god yes…! Mmh, Remy…”

            Remus took him deep in his mouth, swallowing around him to get the wonder pre-come, causing Draco let out a strangled scream as he felt his cock hitting deep into Remus’ throat.

            “Feeling good, Drake?” Remus asked once he pulled out for a moment.

            “Y…Yes…” Draco whined, feeling a little dejected at the loss of the warm, wet heat, in which Remus chuckled and stroked him. “Feels so good…! Please…don’t stop…”

            “What if I want your beautiful lips on me?”

            “Oh yes, please,” Draco licked his lips. “Let me taste your man meat. I wanna drink your milk too.”

            “Suck me, Draco,” Remus stood up and pulled himself out. “Suck me good.”

            Draco crawled over to the cock almost immediately and started licking the tip a few good times to get it nice n hard before taking into his mouth whole.

            “Mmm. So good, Draco,” Remus moaned. “Take more. I want to feel the back of your throat.”

            Draco nodded and took everything in, his gag reflex trained well not to react after so long being with him. Remus moved his hips slightly, rocking back and forth as he reached down and pinched Draco’s nipple. It took all the young blonde’s willpower not to bite down as he felt the pinch, being that his nipples were very sensitive as he continued to suck the half-wolf.

            “You’re so good, Drake,” Remus said as he flicked the nipple before letting it go. “Lay down.”

            Draco sucked a little more before laying down as told. Remus moved over him in a 69 position and gave him a “You know what to do” look before he leaned down and took Draco into his mouth. Draco hummed his approval as the warm wet heat returned around his length and lowered his head to take Remus’ cock back in his mouth, sucking hungrily. Remus moaned at the wonderful mouth that engulfed his length but moved faster than Draco did. He wanted Draco to lose control sooner than him. Draco was almost losing when Remus started blowing him, since it’s been almost forever, but this was really making him snap. He let out a muffled scream as he could feel the familiar tightening in the pit of his stomach, his blowjob almost forgotten. Remus grinned and moved his mouth faster, bobbing with vigor. Draco released his hold on Remus’ cock and started screaming, his body trembling with ecstasy at the incoming wave.

            “Oh god, oh god, oh god, I’M COMING!!!”

            With that last scream, Draco let loose his load into Remus’ mouth. Remus drank him down, savoring every drop. Once he had swallowed everything Draco had in him, he gave a last lick on the tip and turned around to face him.

            “Seems someone has a bit of lack of control,” Remus smirked and leaned down to kiss his neck. “Though you look absolutely beautiful when you orgasm.”

            “Horny toad,” Draco panted with a pout, then looked at Remus’ still erected cock. “You still haven’t released yet…”

            “I know. I am waiting to get the most pleasure out of you. But I am about to explode,” Remus chuckled as he gestured at his cock which was turning a shade of purple.

            “Then let your lovely little Young Master fix it for you,” Draco grinned as he leaned over to kiss the cock and take it back into his mouth.

            “God!” Remus bit his lip. “I want to fuck your throat.”

            Draco muffled his agreement as he sucked him long and hard, massaging his balls. Remus moved his hip, fucking Draco’s mouth as he peaked. He couldn’t stop to feel the pleasure, he just need to come and come he did. Draco almost groaned in relief as he finally tasted the bittersweet muskiness of his beloved’s seed. He drank it hungrily, pumping his cock and massaging his balls, demanding more of the wonderful taste. Remus pumped his hips to get every drop out and into Draco’s mouth.

            “Drink it all. I want you to swallow every drop as I did you.”

            Draco lapped it up like he had been thirsty forever. Oh, how he missed the taste of his love juice as he savoured every drop, earning a groan of approval from the half-wolf.

            “Mmm…You taste so good, Remy…” Draco licked his lips of the residue at the corners with relish.

            Remus laid down beside him and kissed him, tasting himself on his lips, in which Draco kissed him back, tasting a little bit of what’s left of himself inside Remus’ mouth.

            “I wanna fuck you so bad, Draco,” Remus breathed. “I am going to go mad from this forced abstinence.”

            “You’ll be able to fuck me all you want as soon as my birth canal disappears and I’m all healed up, love,” Draco chuckled as he lifted the silencing charm off the babies’ makeshift incubator, though still leaving the towel on so as not to let the babies see them naked.

            “Yes, Drake.” Remus nodded in defeat. “But now I need to take shower to cool down, or…” he snuggled down, kissing Draco on his lips with a grin. “I can kiss you until I am hard again, then we can go at it again.”

            “Mmm…Someone’s being rather fies—” Draco’s words were cut short by the babies’ cries to have their diapers changed, earning a groan from Remus.

            “If I say I hate them at this moment, would you be mad?”

            “A little,” Draco laughed. “But then again, it’s understandable.”

            “You rest. I’ll do it for you this time,” Remus kissed Draco’s forehead and made his way to the glass container. “I am really going to need that shower.”

            Draco chuckled and lay in bed watching Remus did his thing with the twins. He sighed in content. He felt so loved and pampered, and felt as if he had been given the best gift any man could ever have.

            What could go wrong?

\--:--

            “Please hurry up. My work is at stake here.”

            “Your work is already at stake before you knew it, Shaw. Just be patient for a moment and keep a lookout.”

            The young boy named Shaw looked nervously around as Lil and Beck did their thing. They were in the Hall of Records and were at the Restricted Area, and the record keeper Shaw was, needless to say, bullied into submission by the Iron Maiden to have access through them.

            “Got anything on your side?” Lil asked as she searched through the second half of her files.

            Beck flipped quickly at her stack, thanks to her speed-reading and was about to take the last one when something caught her eyes. Moments later, she grinned with satisfaction.

            “Oh yes. And it’s big.”


	80. Chapter 80

            The Dumbledore Army were all gathered in the Shrieking Shack, huddled nearest to the fire with some snacks they got from Honeydukes to share among themselves. They had planned to do this meeting in the Snape Manor along with Neville and Colin, but ever since Severus was relieved of membership from the Order and he has kept both boys busy with being Harry’s mini-bodyguards over the unborn baby, they could no longer conduct their secret meetings there and include them in it. It was Lil who suggested to have the meeting in the Shrieking Shack, mostly because she wanted to get the feel of returning to the place that she was resurrected, and also the fact that this was the most remote place that had no access to Floo-ing or firecall networks, thus their privacy secured.

            “Feels kinda creepy to be back here,” Lil said as she tried to quell her goosebumps. “Strange too, especially at that time I was totally clueless about what I was doing here. Come to think of it, I’m still clueless.”

            “You said you were dead once, then resurrected, right?” Cedric asked, earning a nod from Lil. “I’m sure whoever did it must’ve wanted you to solve the case of the Ministry scandal. So don’t worry. All will be revealed soon.”

            “I doubt it,” Zacharias replied, rolling his eyes. “She’s probably resurrected by the Ministry themselves to spy on us. I mean, is she even on our side to begin with?”

            “Shut up, Zach,” Cho Chang scowled at him. “You’re always the pessimist among us. It’s a wonder Harry could even tolerate you!”

            “Don’t listen to Zach,” Alicia said as she waved Zacharias away. “I think you’re a brave girl to dare tackle the Ministry and come out with a finding like that.”

            “I agree,” Lee Jordan nodded. “You’ve done well by Harry, being able to investigate this far ahead. Whoever resurrected you had done the right thing.”

            “Yeah, well, unfortunately like your Prof. Snape said,” Lil sighed with a sad smile. “I am a walking time bomb. The effects of my resurrection may be temporary. There is no telling when I would just suddenly drop dead and turn into ashes.”

            “Who cares whether you will be permanently alive or not,” Ron said as he clapped her back. “The good thing is you’ve got the Ministry by the balls! Sooner or later, we are going to bust their asses and save the wizarding world!”

            “Calm down, Ron,” Hermione said as she nudged him. “We don’t know yet how the outcome of Headmaster Dumbledore and the Order is at the moment to start anything.”

            “Speaking of which, where _is_ Beck anyway? Shouldn’t she be joining in our meeting as well?”

            “She’s compiling the last of the evidence we’ve found and are showing them to the Order as we speak,” Lil replied. “Hopefully by the day after tomorrow, they will take it up to the secret meeting with the branch Ministries and get started on the plans to boycott the Ministry.”

            “If they are going on an all-out boycott…” Seamus noted. “Would that mean that we are actually going to go up with _the_ government that runs this entire wizarding world?”

            “This is very much exciting,” Luna noted. “It’s almost like the Muggle stories I’ve read about conspiracy theories and espionage.”

            “Isn’t this wonderful, Won-Won?” Lavender cooed at Ron. “This is so much more exciting than Quidditch!”

            “Err, um, yeah, right,” Ron stuttered nervously, earning a glare from Hermione and a yank towards her direction.

            “I just don’t get you!” Hermione scolded Lavender. “You’re just here for the sake of Ron, who happens to be _my_ fiancé, thank you very much! Where’s all the other guys you got to fuck with? You’re not genuinely concerned about Har at all, aren’t you?!”

            “So what if I am?” Lavender shot back. “No one wants a Know-It-All like you who acts like she still wears a chastity belt like it’s the Holy Grail! You should know by now that Ron prefers someone who is experienced!”

            “Yeah, experienced in being a whore!”

            “Why, I oughta…”

            “Ooh~! Catfight!” Fred and George grinned as they turned their attention to the girls as if they were watching some kind of blockbuster movie.

            “Alright, alright, break it up, girls!” Lil came between them. “Now is not the time to be feuding over some guy. We have more important matters to be at hand here, like the Ministry, for example.”

            “Right,” Hermione straightened herself and gave one last glare at Lavender before turning to the group. “So, guys, you know what you’re here for. Anything you would like to report on your progress of spreading the word discreetly to the public about the scandal?”

            “Well, to be honest,” Susan replied as she scratched her chin. “It’s not really that good on my side. Coz of me being related to my aunt who works in the Wizengamot, no one would think too much about my words. They’re probably thinking I was spreading these words on behalf of the Ministry as a reverse psychology propaganda or that I was being a conspiracy theorist. At most, I think I only got through about 1 out of 10 people that I’ve talked to. The rest were between the lines of ‘Oh, yeah, sure, whatever you say, little girl’ or something like that.”

            “It’s up to them whether they want to believe you or not,” Hermione said. “Just keep at it and try to convince as much people to be on ours and the Order’s side as possible.”

            “Come to think of it,” Ernie tapped his chin. “Why do we have to do this discreetly? Can’t we just go to the media with this? We should put this into consideration.”

            “The last thing we need is to have the media broadcasting the whole lot and allowing the Ministry to foil our plans and leap ahead of us before we can boycott them. Don’t put your heads in a bunch about that and concentrate on the agenda at hand first.”

            “I’m just saying. I mean, we’ve got Rita Skeeter in the Daily Prophet and everyone believes her stories, so if we use her…”

            “Rita Skeeter?!” Ginny exclaimed. “Not that tongue-wagger gossip girl who couldn’t even spell a proper name right now, are you?”

            “There is no way you can let that woman know of the scandal!” Fred exclaimed, followed by George. “She is the last person we’d want to have a field day with this news. Remember we tried to use her to advertise our shop?”

            “Yeah,” Ron stifled a chortle. “There are still people who think that your shop is an adult novelty shop that sells things to be shoved into every orifice of the body.”

            “Ron!” Hermione ribbed Ron, slightly reminded of their own private sex games with the toy.

            “Anyway, she is a disaster,” the Weasley twins groaned, finishing each other’s sentences. “Asking her to spread the news…”

            “…is like asking her to pour Boils-Inducing Solution on the whole wizarding world.”

            “We cannot afford that sort of mishap in our heads…”

            “…not after what Lil and Beck had gone through to gather evidence against the Ministry.”

            “OK, seriously? That is really creeping me out,” Justin Finch-Fletchley cringed at the way the Weasley twins were able to communicate like this without missing a beat.

            “How did you think I feel living in that situation for the rest of my natural life?” Ron groaned.

            “We take that as a compliment,” the Weasley twins grinned simultaneously.

            “Well, that’s Susan’s report,” Hermione said. “What about the rest of you?”

            Soon, one by one, the DA members brought forth their news. Hannah had tried her luck with her Hufflepuff classmates and her own family, while Katie Bell spread it through casual talk with the Quidditch player members. Terry, still aiming to please Hermione despite witnessing that catfight just now, told of how he started a secret club of his own as their response to their hate towards Prof. Slughorn—though the name ‘Slug Hater’ wasn’t exactly very impressive—and asked his group members to help spread the word as well. Lavender spread her tales to her many close friends in Divination classes and around her hometown, giving Hermione a smug look in process as she tried to impress Ron on how many people and connections she knew, when in fact Hermione knew most of the people she mentioned were the guys she randomly slept with.

            Cho Chang and Cedric did their part in spreading the word to their families, mostly on Cedric’s part when he spread it to his fellow Quidditch player cum friends. Michael had done his part in spreading the word among his friends and family, particularly those in the Duelling Club, while Ginny spread to housemates of her year. Marietta, being that she was happy to be given a chance to rebel against her mother, was the most enthusiastic in spreading the news as she told it to every gossip monger in the neighbourhood, being that she couldn’t trust her own family to keep the secret from her mother, and to friends she would meet up whenever she got the chance to walk the dog when she was home instead of at Hogwarts, and even in Hogwarts, she spread them to every Ravenclaw she could get her hands on. Justin played his part by telling this to his Muggle parents, and was almost forbidden to come back to school for fear of being hurt by this scandal, and also told it to his Muggle friends who knew of his nature as a Muggle-born, scoring a bit of fame among them for being part of some sort of bravado freedom fighter.

            Anthony spread the word via his fellow Prefects in school as well as his family members, while Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas to their respective friends in Gryffindor and to their families, though Seamus’ father took it a little harder than Dean’s family did, claiming that it was just as much as a nasty shock as he had when he found out Seamus’ mother was a witch after their marriage. Angelina spread it to the usual family and friends, while Lee Jordan, being that he was the Quidditch commentator and good with words and broadcasting machinery, has gotten started on creating his own pirate radio station that can only be accessed via a very remote channel that only certain headphones can pick up the broadcast and made live broadcasts of it under a pseudonym. His way was, by far, the riskiest way because of the chances of hitting it out to the larger public and consequently the Ministry, but the DA members finally voted their trust on Lee Jordan knowing what he was doing.

            Luna had not much friends, so she only had her father, who is the editor-in-chief of The Quibbler, to tell. Though unfortunately for her father, because it was to be discreet and not to let anyone, much less the Ministry and the media, to know, he had to hold up his end of the bargain of restraining himself from publishing this scoop in favour of his daughter, who quietly made an actual threat (something she had never done before) that if he exposed it before its time, she would either kill herself the way her mother did or disown herself from him. Ernie was a bit of a tight spot and had limited people to tell since he was descended from nine consecutive generations of pureblood witches and wizards and had been pressured by his family to be a sort of elitist like them, while Zacharias was the least successful with his news-spreading because of his previous haughty reputation.

            The twins Padma and Parvati Patil were just as enthusiastic as Marietta in spreading the news to their friends and family as they would do anything for their little Harry whom they share a sisterly affection for. They still continued to rival out each other in the news-spreading, seeing who could spread it the most and in the most discreet way possible, claiming that it would help them gather merits later when it was time to grab Harry’s attention on them. They faced the same situation as Justin from their parents but was determined to carry on with their mission in favour of their little Harry. Alicia had her fair share of friends to spread the word with, while the Weasley twins were probably having the most advantage in news-spreading as they ran a shop in the busiest part of the wizarding world. They also revealed to be affiliated with Lee Jordan in selling those certain headphones in secret for anyone who would want to listen in to Lee Jordan’s broadcast in his pirate radio station, and offered special coupons so that those interested can come to their shop at their discretion to purchase those headphones.

            “Well, we have a rather fruitful result so far despite the odds,” Hermione said as she took note of everyone’s report. “Is there anything you would like to add before we conclude this meeting?”

            Just as everyone was looking at each other to see if they have missed out anything, a rare species of hawk owl      came flying in and landed on Lil’s shoulder, a note tied onto its leg. Lil set the owl down onto the table, much to the team’s surprise, and took off the note from the leg while the owl helped itself to some shepherd’s pie. As she opened the note, everyone leaned in to see what it read, anxious to find out what it was.

            “What does it say?” Lee Jordan asked. “And whose owl is this? It’s rare to see this kind of breed around.”

            “That owl is Bear, belonging to Beck,” Lil said as she read the note. “Careful. He bites. He only lets me and Beck manhandle him.”

            “So what does the note say?” Padma and Parvati asked simultanouesly, almost like the Weasley twins.

            Lil finished reading and looked up with a smile.

            “Beck had just finished collecting every single evidence, both concrete and circumstantial evidence, on the Ministry and confirmed to have the secret meeting with the branch Ministries by next week.”

            “That’s wonderful!” Cho Chang exclaimed, followed by cheers and high-fives from all the DA members.

            “And…?” Hermione probed, seeing that Lil seemed to have something else to say.

            “ _You_ are invited to attend. All of you DA members.”

            It felt almost like forever when the news sunk into each and every one’s head. There was only one thing to say, expressed exclusively by Ron:

            “Bloody hell.”


	81. Chapter 81

            Harry had been working on the baby’s room while Severus was out to handle some orders from his customers. After almost half a day of fixing and rearranging for the umpteenth time (and still not really being satisfied with it), he got tired and took a nap, then woke up with a sudden craving for apples and caramel. Stretching his tired bones, he got off bed and waddled quietly to the kitchen to fix himself his cravings, still used to doing things on his own.

            “Hey, Har!” Neville, who had just got back from harvesting the ripe vegetables and fruits from the garden, saw him and perked up. “You need anything?”

            “Caramel and apples,” Harry said with a sheepish smile. “I suddenly really want some, so I was thinking of fixing some myself.”

            “Oh, don’t you worry your socks off, Har. Always glad to help you and our future little Young Master/Mistress,” Neville smiled happily as he set down the basket of fruits and vegetables and started rummaging the larder to prepare them. “You just sit there and make yourself comfortable. Caramel and apples coming right up.”

            Harry smiled and sat down on the chair at the kitchen counter. It felt almost yesterday that he sat with the hired help back when he was still a slave, having meals together with Neville and Colin, chatting up about their days. Now here he was, free as any common wizard or witch can be and sitting here carrying the most precious gift his beloved could ever give him.

            “Everyone can’t wait to see you, little one,” Harry cooed as he rubbed his belly earning the baby’s light kick in response.

            “Oh, we all sure are,” Neville smiled as he brought over Harry’s craving. “Here ya go, Har.”

            “Thanks,” Harry said as he took some and started eating. The pink flush of delight that went across the boy’s face told Neville that he definitely enjoyed it.

            “We’ve been hoping for a long time for Master Snape to have a family of his own. He’s been alone for so long and had been turning down so many suitors in the past. The only person he had ever really loved before he met you was that other slave. I think Kaleb was his name.”

            “Well, I’ve heard of him having other slaves before me but I never knew he had a slave for an ex-lover.”

            “Yup, he did. He was around before I was born, so I don’t know much about the details, but from what I heard from everyone else, Master Snape really loved this slave. Treated him like a prince, though not as much as he treats you. But Kaleb hated Master Snape with a passion, said he never wanted to have anything to do with Master Snape and wanted to just do his duties as a slave and get it over and done with, meaning until Master Snape gets bored of him. He didn’t appreciate anything Master Snape did for him and dedicated his life to making Master Snape miserable. I heard they’ve been together for 16 years until Master Snape finally gave up and sold him back to the business. Stupid of Kaleb, if you ask me. If he can’t even appreciate and understand what Master Snape had done for him, he doesn’t deserve him.”

            “Whatever happened to Kaleb?” Harry asked.

            “Dunno,” Neville shrugged. “By the time I understood my surroundings, he no longer exists in this household. Some say he still serves as a slave, some say he might have gotten into something nasty with his rebellious attitude and died, some say he’s finally free. Who knows? He doesn’t matter anymore. All that matters now is that you’re here, and you’re making Master Snape the happiest man in the world.”

            “Yeah, you’re right. And I’m glad that we are both in each other’s lives now.”

            “That’s the spirit!” Neville smiled as he clapped Harry’s back. “Has the doc said anything about whether the baby is a boy or a girl?”

            “Nope,” Harry shook his head. “We’re only supposed to be able to tell once I’ve reached my 6th month, and I’m still barely in my 4th month right now.”

            “Guess it’s gonna be a bit of a wait. Hey, Har, you realize that till today it’s almost a year you’ve been in our household and with Master Snape?”

            “I…I have?” Harry blinked in surprise.

            “Of course. I can’t believe it myself either! Has it been that long already?” Neville laughed as he put the vegetables and fruits he harvested into the larder. “So, now that you know it, are you guys gonna do anything?”

            Harry thought for a while as he ate before he smiled and lit up.

            “Do you know where the leash is that I wore when I first came here a long time ago?”

            “Well, he told me to throw it away or do whatever I want with it, but I decided to keep it in case i get the pet dog i always wanted. Why?”

            “I think I have an idea. But I’m gonna need you to bring me the wizarding address book. I want to see if there is a place for…some special night.”

            “Are you sure?” Neville said warily. “Master Snape said not to let you go out too far. The Ministry might…”

            “Don’t worry,” Harry chuckled. “You’re gonna start sounding like him sooner or later. Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”

            “Alright. Your call. I’ll get it right away.”

            “Oh, and I’m gonna have to borrow the leash and I’m gonna need a carriage as well.”

            Neville raised a brow, wondering what his friend was up to this time, but when Harry gave him a reassuring smile, he rolled his eyes, sighed and shrugged as he went off to do as he was asked, hoping in his heart that his little friend would not overdo what he had in mind.

\--:--

            “Har? Har, I’m home.”

            Severus came home after a long day of dealing with customers and receiving odds requests and orders. First thing he did was going upstairs to see his little beloved, but instead there was a letter on the bed greeting him. Severus looked around to see that Harry was nowhere in sight before picking up the letter that read:

* * *

 

_Go to Madam Air's Love Shack and ask for a ‘Little Boy Blue Special’._

_Love, Harry_

* * *

 

            Severus was surprised when he read the note, and maybe a little annoyed that the hired help had allowed Harry to leave home when he had given strict orders not to let Harry wander out far for fear of letting the Ministry find out about him being free from Voldemort’s clutches. He would have to deal with them later. For now, he wondered what his little darling was up to and decided to humor him. He got dressed in his casual best and Floo-ed into Madam Air’s Love Shack as per requested by the letter. There was a woman at the front desk. She had dark blond hair and chest that look more like a couple of melons then a real chest.

            “Hello sir, can I help you?” the woman asked with a professional smile on her face.

            “Umm, I’m going for ‘Little Boy Blue Special’, please?” Severus requested, feeling almost awkward to say that.

            “Ah, yes,” she smiled brightly and took a couple keys and had her follow him down a long, narrow hallway. “Your slave it already for you, sir.”

            Severus followed behind her, wondering what kind of surprise was Harry up to this time, although he was surprised at first to hear the woman said ‘slave’. They soon came to the end of the hall and she unlocked a door.

            “He is all yours,” she winked and left, leaving the ex-Potions Master to stand there confused.

            “Umm, thanks.”

            He soon opened the door and was almost shocked at the sight before him. Harry was kneeling naked on the bed, the leash he wore back when he was still in that auction party almost a year ago hanging from his neck. His head was bowed. On the bed were silk sheets and covered in red and white rose petals. Severus’ heart jumped at the sight of this, his cock already starting to awaken.

            “W…What’s this…?” the older man managed to breathe out.

            “Master,” Harry lifted his head, getting off and walking over and handing him the leash. “Do with me what you will.”

            “W…Well, isn’t this a surprise? Wasn’t quite expecting this but, well,” Severus took the leash and pulled Harry gently towards him. “Who am I to refuse?”

            Soon, Severus was no longer caring about what was going on anymore, his sexual drive taking over as he took Harry’s lips, kissing him deeply. Harry kissed back, his arms wrapping around Severus’ middle, holding him there. Severus kept kissing him like he hadn’t kissed him in eternity, guiding him towards the bed, while Harry let him take him where ever he wanted him to go.

            “Mmm…You are so sexy in this, my love,” Severus kissed his neck, getting lower and lower until he reached his navel, twirling circles on the belly button, while his hands reach up to rub his nipples.

            “Ah! M-Master!” Harry shivered and panted. “Please, let me serve you.”

            “Very well, since you asked nicely,” Severus let go of him. “Remove my clothes. All of them.”

            Harry did, removing one at a time. He was already wet between his legs just waiting for Severus to arrive. As he took off his shirt he leaned in and kissed the chest.

            “Mmh, very nice,” Severus stroked Harry’s hair. “Pepper me with kisses. Keep going until you reached my cock.”

            Harry nodded and moved down his body, licking down the way until he got to the cock. He rubbed it and looked up at him, waiting for another command.

            “You know what to do with it, love,” Severus smirked and held his cheeks to nudge him close to his cock.

            Harry took him into his mouth, moaning at the taste and wiggled his hips as he itched to touch himself. He took Severus down the root, sucking him good as Severus ran his fingers through Harry’s hair as he thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of Harry’s mouth around his cock, and he secretly grinned to himself seeing how much Harry wanted to touch himself. Harry, on the other hand, bobbed fast, looking up at him, seeming to beg Severus to touch him.

            “Mmm, you want to touch yourself, don’t you, love?”

            Harry blushed and nodded, not taking his mouth off of Severus as he wiggled his hips again.

            “What if I say you are not allowed to touch at all?”

            “Whatever you want, Master,” Harry pulled off, stroking Sirius, though in reality, he really wanted to.

            “Really now? Coz I can see you’re rather soaked, especially right about,” Severus reached down to flick the clit, “here.”

            “Ah! Master…!” Harry shivered. “P-Please…”

            “Very well,” Severus chuckled. “Touch yourself, but don’t come unless I say so.”

            Harry had wanted Severus to touch him but this was just as good. He took Severus back into his mouth and reached down to touch himself, moaning as he did. Severus thrust his hip a little, fucking Harry’s mouth and groaning in pleasure as well, his hands rested on either side of Harry’s head. Harry pushed two fingers in him, his body was so ready that he couldn’t stop the orgasm from coming. He tried to hold on and take his fingers out but it didn’t do any good. He moaned and shook through his orgasm, and Severus could tell from the shuddering and the tightening of Harry’s lips around his cock that he had just had his first orgasm of the session. He smirked and pulled out, grabbing Harry’s nipples with his thumb and index finger, teasing them.

            “What did I say about coming?”

            “I’m sorry,” Harry let go of Severus’ cock, still shuddering as he gasped out. “Please…punish me.”

            “Oh yes, I will. I’m gonna punish you for disobeying a master’s order,” Severus whispered as he pushed Harry down, but not so harshly, onto the bed, then gently picked up Harry’s hips and rested his buttocks on his lap, hugging Harry’s legs up high and against his shoulder.

            “Do what you want, Master,” Harry panted, looking up at him and putting his arms over his head. Memories of him being punished by Voldemort and Lucius came in the back of his mind and sent a small shudder down his spine, but he reminded himself that he was in the hands of Severus, his beloved who had asked for his hand in marriage, and he was going to put his trust on Severus that he would never really hurt him.

            “Oh yes, Master is gonna punish you. Brace yourself,” Severus whispered seductively as he landed a first swat onto Harry’s pale ass.

            “Master…!” Harry groaned and twitched at the sting.

            “You have been very naughty, very naughty indeed,” Severus spoke between spanks, hitting as hard as he was allowed to, alternating between cheeks and the middle, turning it bright red.

            “Ah, please, Master. I need you. Please fuck me,” Harry begged, wriggling on Severus’ lap as each sting sent jolts of pleasure down to his nether regions. “Please fuck me!”

            “Such a demanding slave I have here. If I say no?” Severus grinned as he continued to spank, but not as hard anymore.

            “I…I am at…at your command, Master,” Harry panted with a whine.

            “Then I should just continue with this all night long then,” Severus grinned in a teasing mode, wanting Harry to beg for it.

            “No, please. Fuck me, Master…I need it so bad…” Harry begged. “P-Put your cock in…in me.”

            “Alright, love. Alright. Here I come

            So saying, Severus chuckled and positioned Harry in missionary position. He quickly lubed himself up with Harry’s wet juices and entered him in one steady thrust all the way to the hilt, earning a yelp of approval from the boy as the latter wrapped his legs around him.

            “Yes!” Harry moaned. “Please, fuck me hard, but don’t hurt the baby.”

            “Oh, yes, I will. I’ll fuck you till you lose your mind, and don’t worry, our baby is in good hands.”

            With that, Severus started thrusting in a steady pace, slowly increasing momentum as he hit the G-spot almost immediately. Harry screamed in ecstaty as he reached up and grabbed at Severus, his nails biting into the skin. Severus leaned down to suckle Harry’s nipples, hitting the G-spot over and over again as he thrust harder and deeper as he was allowed to. Harry cried out again, trying to talk but the words came like babble. He just held on to Severus as he neared his second orgasm.

            You’re going to come, aren’t you? Then come. Let me feel you grip my cock.”

            From the hitting of his G-spot with renewed force, Harry shuddered and came all over Severus’ cock, gripping him very tightly. Severus tried to hold back as much as possible while still milking Harry out, his hand reaching down to stroke the clit while fucking him at the same time as he groaned at the tightness, knowing from his experience of having female slaves when he was younger that a woman can have multiple orgasms in one sitting. He could feel Harry wriggling around, his body tightening and loosening on Sirius, but not quite coming.

            “Yes, come for me. Come for me some more before I cover you with my seed, my lovely slave,” Severus goaded as he continued his ministration.

            Harry’s eyes soon rolled back in his head as he came a third time, his body going taught as a board.

            “Ooh yes, yes, yes…!”

            Severus quickly pulled out and pumped himself, covering Harry with his seed. Harry panted, laying out as limp as a noodle.

            “Fuck,” Harry’s chest heaved up and down as he basked in the afterglow.

            “Mmh yeah, ‘fuck’ is right,” Severus calmed down from his orgasms and lay beside Harry, one arm around him. “Though that word does bring back memories.”

            “Did you like it?” Harry smiled and snuggled close to him.

            “Like? I love it,” Severus kissed Harry’s cheek. “What’s the occasion, really?”

            “Well, Neville told me that it’s been a year to this day that I have been brought into your household and became your slave,” Harry blushed, twirling a strand of Severus’ locks. “So basically I wanted to celebrate it. Like an anniversary or something. And somehow I just missed being your slave, for some odd, stupid reason, so I…came up with this. Ever since I got pregnant, I feel I just swallowed a beach ball or something. I just wanted to feel like that again…sexy.”

            “Love, you are sexy no matter how you are,” Severus peppered the boy’s face with kisses. “You have no idea what is the first thing that crossed my mind every time I wake up in the morning seeing you in all your sexy glory.”

            “Really?” Harry looked up at him, blushing deeper. “I love you, Severus. Very much.”

            “I love you too, Harry. Forever and a day.”

            “Has it really been a year since we’ve been together? Time sure passes by so fast.”

            “It sure has, and I’m getting closer and closer to being an old bat like all my students call me behind my back.”

            “Ah, but you’re _my_ sexy old bat.”

            “Tease,” Severus chuckled as he pinched Harry’s nose. “I’m glad you accepted my marriage proposal. You were so cute when you were hugging me like your life depended on it and crying those happy tears.”

            “And I am glad you would even want to propose to me,” Harry smiled as he nuzzled him. “I never thought that this day would come.”

            “I’ve wanted to do it since the day I found out you were pregnant, but with everything that’s been going on, I never got the chance.”

            “Yeah, I understand,” Harry nodded. “I see that it seems no one knows about you proposing to me, not even Neville and the household.”

            “I didn’t think it would be right to announce it just yet, what with the Ministry and Voldemort and all. I was hoping once everything’s settled, then we’ll announce it.”

            Harry nodded in agreement. He knew he was right. Now was not the time to be announcing good news when everywhere, bad news was happening. Severus took Harry’s face and kissed his lips as Harry put his leg over him, kissing him back. They kissed and kissed until Harry started to gently hump Severus’ thigh, rubbing his wet pussy against it.

            “Are we turned on again, love?” Severus grinned and tickled his chin.

            “Maybe,” Harry smiled shyly.

            “So does my little pretty wife-to-be want a stroking now?”

            “Mmm, if it is where I think, then yes.”

            “Mmh, such a naughty little wife I got here. Perhaps I should withhold it for another time,” Severus grinned deviously.

            “You’re mean,” Harry pouted.

            Severus chuckled and reached down to flick gently at the clit, which was still wet from before, making Harry moan and open his leg up wider for more access. He increased his speed, rubbing and massaging the clit. Harry started rolling his hips as Severus slipped two fingers in and fucked him, while the thumb continued to massage the clit.

            “Ah, Sev,” Harry grabbed him. “Ah…! D-Deeper, please…!”

            Severus kissed him as he dug in deeper, fucking him vigorously until he hit the spot.

            “Oh God…! Right there, right there…!” Harry gripped the bed. “S…Sev…would you…” he bit his lip and looked down at his vagina and blushed deep red, “lick…”

            “Getting bolder, aren’t we?” Severus smiled. “You must be very at ease with your current pussy boy form, aren’t you? Spread your legs for me, love.”

            Harry spread his legs but put his hands over his face, blushing like crazy. He felt rather embarrassed for being so needy right now. Severus reached up and removed his hands from his face.

            “Don’t. There is nothing to be embarrassed about. I want to see your beautiful face, love.” Severus said as he leaned down and started licking and finger-fucking him at the same time.

            “Ah, oh God!” Harry ran his fingers through Severus’ hair and grabbed him. “Please, so close to coming. God!”

            Severus captured Harry’s clit in his lips and sucked and licked harder at it as he hit the G-spot vigorously. Harry swore again as he gripped his head with his legs and arched up as he came. Severus drank in Harry’s come greedily, milking him out some more.

            “Oh god, Sev, p-p-please,” Harry panted, his body twitching. “Stop, please…!”

            Severus swallowed the last drop and leaned up, “Why? What’s wrong, love?”

            “A little sensitive. Just hold off for a moment.” Harry didn’t want it stop but it was to the point where it hurt more than it felt good.

            “Alright, love,” Severus leaned forward and kissed Harry. “Did it feel good?”

            “Very. Thank you for doing it,” Harry paused for a moment. “Do you like the taste? I…I mean, don’t get me wrong. I really didn’t want you to just be doing it because I loved it. I wanted you to like it too.”

            “Oh yes, don’t you worry your socks off there, love,” Severus licked his lips. “You taste exquisite, like fine wine, but better. I could just suck you dry.”

            “You taste good too. I really like to drink you up, if I could,” Harry blushed again.

            “Oh? Would you like to drink me now? Or would you like to have your ass drink me?”

            “Severus~!” Harry hid his face, going redder. “Don’t say it like that.”

            “Why so shy all of a sudden? We’re going to be married now and we’ve been at this for almost a year. There’s nothing we don’t know about each other’s body.”

            “Still it is embarrassing. I can do it; I just can’t really say it right now. Don’t ask me why.”

            “Then let me do all the talking then. Since you can’t drink my come because you’re pregnant, I shall let your ass do the drinking. Go on all fours, love, so that I can enter you.”

            “Please, do it slow, Severus,” Harry asked of him as he did as he was told. “Make it last.”

            “You know I will.”

            With that, Severus took either side of Harry’s hips and entered him slowly, his cock still quite lubed up from fucking the boy’s “front door”. Harry panted, almost falling on his hands as he whined his approval. Severus held onto Harry’s belly to support the frontal weight and started thrusting in a slow and steady rhythm, his cock rubbing against the tight inner muscles of Harry’s ass.

            “Ah, Sev…!” Harry moaned. “God, I love you. I love you so much!”

            “Mmh…! I love you too…Mmh, yes…yes…Yes…!” Severus continued to thrust nice and steady, inches away from the prostate.

            “Deeper, you’re so close,” the boy begged, having fallen on his elbows.

            “Oh yes…Getting there…” Severus said. No sooner he said that than he shifted angles until he finally hit the spot just nice.

            “Oh fucking hell! Yes. right there, Sev, please…!”

            Severus still carried on with his steady rhythm, but every time he thrust in, he hit the spot dead on, sending stars into Harry’s mind’s eyes, making the boy scream with pleasure as he fell on his face.

            “God, Sev…! It feels so good…!”

            “Mmm, yes, your ass is wrapping tightly around me! So good…! I’m gonna go faster…!” Severus moaned as he started increasing his momentum.

            “Ah, please…!” Don’t be over yet…!” Harry begged.

            “Don’t worry, it won’t.”

            Severus soon increased his momentum, but only enough to drive Sev crazy as he hit the spot over and over in good intervals. Harry screamed “Yes, yes, yes” over and over again as well as he moved back against him, wanting to feel him deeper inside him, in which the older man moved in deeper, hitting the spot dead on, his cock starting to throb a little as he tightened his grip a little on Harry’s side. Harry reached down to stroke himself gently. He was panting hard like he had run a 19k run.

            “Are you going to come now, my love?” Severus asked, teasing him by slowing down a little.

            “Ah, no. Not yet,” Harry forced himself to pull his hand away and gripped the bed.

            With the cock still in him, Severus maneuvered Harry into missionary position and spread his legs so that he could hit the spot more accurately. Harry begged for more in his moan and Severus responded by increasing his speed a little bit, hitting the spot just right, his hand on either knee to anchor the legs open.

            “Please…” Harry bit his lip at the feeling of his spot being hit relentlessly. “…t-touch me…”

            “I’m…I’m losing it, love…” Severus panted, trying to hold back his almost imploding orgasm as he reached down to stroke and pump Harry. He usually took pride in his stamina to hold back, but after a long day of work and the previous ‘session’, unless he had a good dose of lust potion, he wasn’t really in much shape at the moment.

            “Please, just a bit longer…” Harry begged. “I will come, I promise.”

            Severus tried his best to hold back as he continued to rub the clit, sticking his finger in to fuck him, finding the spot almost immediately. As soon as Harry started to whimper and wriggle when the spot was hitting, his orgasm slowly building, Severus started thrusting and finger-fucking him at the same pace, his eyes almost dark in lust as he tried really hard to hold back, his cock throbbing like mad. Harry held on for dear life as he was getting closer and closer to the peak. Almost immediately, he reached it and came, his words of pleasure caught in his throat as he let out a wordless scream.

            When Harry came, it was like having his cock put into a wringer as Severus let out a loud groan, bathing Harry’s insides with his seed, his hand still carrying on milking him out for all its worth. Harry arched more as he came again, but there was no fluid this time, possibly wrung dry. As soon as his orgasms calm down, he fell back and collapsed, passing out from it as it was his biggest one yet since he held back so hard. Harry felt bad seeing him like this once he calmed down from his own tremors.

            “I’m sorry, Sev,” Harry kissed his temple and pulled the covers over them.

            Severus mumbled something in his sleep that sounded almost like ‘I love you’ and his arms reached over automatically to cuddle Harry close to his chest. Harry smiled and snuggled close, and whispered something before falling asleep:

            “Happy anniversary.”

\--:--

            “Yes, Minister Fudge. He and Lord Snape was here in my establishment. They just left.”

            The figure looked up from his hiding place as he heard the woman at the front desk talking to the old Minister in hushed tones through the firecall. He could only hear her side of the conversation as the crackle of the fire made the person’s voice on the other side inaudible.

            “Yes, of course…And I will get my reward for telling you this, right? Uh-huh…Yes, thank you…Yes…It’s a pleasure doing business with you, Minister Fudge…”

            The figure quickly scampered away, hoping that he would make it in time.


	82. Chapter 82

            “Look, Har! Check that out!”

            Harry turned to see what Colin was pointing at. He was at Hogsmeade with Neville and Colin to help them with their usual grocery shopping because he was getting a bout of cabin fever, no thanks to Severus who told him to stay home no matter what after that anniversary celebration they had at Madam Air’s Love Shack, enjoyable as it may be. Again, Neville and Colin were a little hesitant in taking him along for grocery shopping after being reprimanded by their Master for letting Harry go out without express permission, but after a long bout of begging from Harry and a rather convincing disguise due to his semi-long hair—apparently Severus had thought Harry in long hair was rather appealing and forbid him to cut it any shorter than shoulder-length—the two boys relented, but only if he promised to stick close to them. Right now, the trio found themselves standing outside a baby store and began window-shopping, checking out the items in display.

“Oh, that is cute,” Neville was fawning over everything, though his attention was particularly leaning towards one of those expensive toys, especially the lion doll at the corner.

“That one is cute too,” Harry chuckled as he pointed at a porcelain doll. “That is if I get a little girl.”

            “It sure is,” Colin smiled at the sight of the doll. “Shall we go in and check it out. I think there are some nice clothes as well.”

            “You go ahead,” Harry said as he gestured at the convenient store next door. “I’ll just get myself some crystallized pineapple. I have a sudden craving for it. I’ll be right back.”

            “Are you sure, Harry?” Neville asked worriedly. “We can go with you. I don’t want to get in trouble with Master Snape again.”

            “Naw, I’m fine, don’t worry. It’ll only be a sec. I won’t tell Sev if you won’t.”

            “Well…alright. But give a holler if anything goes wrong, aye, mate? We’ll be just right in here.”

            “Scouts honour.”

            After watching their little friend walking away to the convenient store and made sure he entered safely, they both went into the store, staying close to the entrance in case he needed them. While they looked around, Harry walked down numerous aisles and looked around for what he wanted. Just when he found his craving snack and was about to reach over to get it, a stout calloused hand with chipped nails reached out from nowhere and stopped him in his tracks. Harry gasped as he saw that it was Wormtail, looking up at him with a slightly wicked grin hidden behind a patchy scarf, blocking Harry from the view of the cashier.

            “Well, well, what have we here? Master Riddle will be pleased. Yes, he will.”

            “Wh-Wh-What are you doing h-h-here?” Harry asked in shock as he backed away, looking around warily for a possible Voldemort ambush. “I-I-Is Voldemort with you?”

            “Oh, don’t worry, Master Riddle doesn’t know I am here,” Wormtail grinned again. “No, he doesn’t. I am here to help you, yes, I am.”

            “H-Help me? H-How?”

            Without warning, Wormtail started pushing him. The man may be short and stout, but he had strength, and a few times he had almost succeeded in throwing Harry off balance. Harry tried to fight back but Wormtail was still clearly stronger.

            “W-What the hell are you doing?!” Harry pushed him back, only to earn another shove.

            “Helping you, of course, yes, I am,” Wormtail chuckled as he continued shoving him.

            “You call this helping me?! What are you trying to pull here?!”

            “Trust me. It would be much more merciful than what the Ministry will do to you.”

            “Wh…What…?”

            Wormtail quickly took advantage of Harry being off-guard to deliver the hardest shove he could make, then delivered a Bat-Bogey hex straight to his stomach. That kick was hard enough to send the boy hitting against one of the shelf, toppling everything. A sharp pain as if being impaled by a sword jabbed thru his stomach and he felt the worse as he curled in a fetal position, letting out a cry.

            “Hey! You wanna fight, take it outside, will ya?” the cashier hollered, unable to really see what had exactly happened as her view was blocked.

            “Don’t tell Master Riddle I met you, OK?” Wormtail managed a guilty squeak before kicking Harry in the stomach for good measure and transforming into his Rat form and hurriedly scurried away from the store. Harry winced as the pain got worse, and he could feel something trickling down between his legs as he continued to hold his stomach. The cashier, after her view was finally cleared, saw a small pool of blood where the seat of his pants were and quickly attended to him.

            “Oh Merlin! Are…Are you alright?!”

            “What’s going on here?”

            The cashier looked up to see Severus with the two guilty-looking servant boys Neville and Colin tailing behind him. Severus was just around the neighbourhood, having getting off work a little early and wanted to surprise Harry with a gift for their baby and planned to take Harry for a walk after that. Neville and Colin had not expected that their Master would be coming to shop in the same store they were in, and one accusing glance from him told them that they were going to be punished severely this time for disobeying his order again, especially when he caught sight of the bag that he had given Harry for outing purposes before they could hide it from him. He demanded the two boys to take him to Harry and was about to find him when he saw the cashier flustered over somebody lying on a pool of blood.

            “Oh! Lord Snape! This girl, she…”

            Severus took one glance and knew immediately that it was his beloved Harry in female disguise, and immediately paled when he saw that the blood belonged to his little beloved. Without thinking, he pulled away the cashier and picked Harry up, panic and worry strewn across his face. Neville and Colin saw it too and looked like they had their guts torn out of their bodies alive. Harry opened his eyes to look up and saw Severus, and almost immediately the guilt just flooded his eyes with tears.

            “S…Sev…! T…The baby…Our b…baby…!”

            “Shh, shh. Let’s get you to St. Mungo,” Severus held Harry close and demanded the cashier to lead him to the nearest fireplace, in which she led him to her own at the backroom.

            “Our baby…Our baby…” Harry started sobbing in Severus’ arms as he clung on him.

            “Shh…It’ll be alright, shh…”

            Severus immediately Floo-ed straight to St. Mungo, followed by Neville and Colin who looked like they were going to go into a verge of tears themselves. Lucky for him, there was a familiar face right at the vicinity as Ard-Rí Constantine, medi-wizard of Kym, was there to get fresh supplies from St. Mungo that he couldn’t get from the school’s Potions Master. With a flash, Severus, carrying Harry bridal style and his robes covered in blood, sprinted towards the medi-wizard with an almost bewildered look on his face.

            “Ard-Rí Constantine! Please help! Harry is losing a lot of blood!”

            “Good Lord! Quick! Put him on a bed!”

            Ard-Rí Constantine immediately went into his work mode and took to manhandling Harry. Severus did as he was told, while Harry continued sobbing as his hands still clung on him, fearing the worst. Ard-Rí Constantine quickly came over with a few nurse-witches with him and waved a wand over Harry’s belly, checking it over while the nurse-witches worked hard in trying to bring down the bleeding. After a minute or so, he sighed and put his wand down.

            “I’m sorry. You’re too late. It’s gone.”

            “No…No, it can’t be!” Severus’ pale face got even paler as he squeezed Harry’s hand. “You must be mistaken! Look again!”

            “There is no sign of life whatsoever, Lord Snape,” Ard-Rí Constantine sighed and shook his head. “I’m sorry. It’s gone, probably already gone before you got him here. Whatever caused this was a very strong blow.”

            “No…No, no, no, NO!!” Harry wailed almost hysterically as he buried his face in Severus’ chest.

            “It’s OK, Harry,” Severus held him, trying not to break down and be strong for Harry, even though he felt like screaming as well. “Calm down, you need to calm down.”

            “Oh God! It’s all my fault! It’s all my fault!” Harry wailed uncontrollably, prompting Neville and Colin to break into tears as well. “I should’ve listened to Neville! I should’ve let him and Colin follow me to the store! We shouldn’t have separated! And now I bumped into Wormtail and I got our baby killed! Oh God! It's all MY FAULT!!”

            “What did you say…?” Severus knelt down and picked his chin up, looking at him with a demanding glare. “You said Wormtail. Did he do this to you?”

            Harry widened his eyes; he didn’t mean this to slip like this. He had wanted to keep this quiet and bear the responsibility. He looked away, “I…It’s my fault. I’m the one who…”

            Severus pressed a finger to his mouth, forbidding him to say more. Harry could see that Severus’ eyes were swimming with negative emotions, mostly murderous, at the person who had caused the death of their precious flesh and blood. Ard-Rí Constantine soon got started with taking Harry’s pants off and fitted under his butt with numerous towels and a metal basin that was cold to the skin.

            “I’m sorry, lad, but you’re gonna have to push the baby out,” Ard-Rí Constantine said regretfully as he reached down to massage Harry’s belly.

            “No…No, please, I don’t want to…” Harry begged, more tears flowing out of his sodden jade-green eyes.

            “I’m sorry, but you have to. Or else you would have an internal infection and I may be forced to save you in a way that would cause you to lose any ability to have children again.”

            “But…But…” Harry turned to Severus pleadingly. “M…Make him stop telling me that…It’s my fault…Don’t…”

            “Har, please,” Severus said quietly, traces of tears welling up in the underside of his eyes. “Do as he says.”

            Harry, as much as he wanted to be in denial and self-loathing, knew deep down inside that he had do as they told him. Gritting his teeth and shutting his eyes tight, he pushed along with Ard-Rí Constantine’s massages, all the while clinging onto Severus for support and ridden with torrents of sobs. After about 5 minutes and one more last push ever so slightly, the dead fetus soon slid out between his legs and into the basin. Against his better judgment, he leaned down to peek at the baby. It was a total mess of blood, but it was almost fully formed with all the essential parts like the head, face, ears, hands and feet, and as Ard-Rí Constantine massaged some more, the afterbirth that was still connected to the baby via the umbilical cord. To most people, it would be the most disgusting thing they have ever seen, but to Harry, nothing could be more beautiful…and heartbreaking.

            After a few minutes of staring at the baby, Harry let loose a torrent of wails, tears pouring down like rain as his cries echoed throughout the room. Severus had to hold him close to try and calm him down while Ard-Rí Constantine issued some sedatives and force-fed him in order to allow him to relax and rest. Once Harry finally stopped fighting the effects of the sedatives and gave in to sleep, Ard-Rí Constantine cleaned him up, making sure that Harry’s transformation from a pussy boy to a regular boy went smoothly as soon as the effects of the impregnation potion wore off, and dressed him in the hospital gown and moved him to the maternity ward to rest. Severus ordered Neville and Colin to stay there and watch over Harry, never leaving him out of their sight ever again, before making his way to the nearest hospital toilet and locked himself in one of the cubicles. He cast a very strong Silencing Charm before slumping against the door and onto the floor, letting out his own set of agonized wails as he cried over his misfortune, slamming his fists until they bled against the door to vent out his hate and pain. If it weren’t for the fact that he was in the hospital and not in the manor, things would’ve been flying across the room and crashed like a storm just hit, given Severus’ current state of mind right now.

            5 hours had past after Severus finally calmed down from his mourning their child’s death. Slowly he got up, magicked away all traces of blood on the door that he had slammed and lifted the Silencing Charm off the cubicle before coming out and washed his hands off the blood and cleaned his abrasion wounds. He approached the out-patient section of St. Mungo to have his hands be applied with Insta-Cure solution before going out to get something for Harry to cheer him up. When he did come back, he had a white rose for Harry. He didn’t know exactly what type of flower to give him, but the white rose seemed to be appropriate at best. He sat it beside the bed and gestured Neville and Colin who were sitting there watching their little friend vigilantly to leave. Harry slowly stirred when he felt somewhat Severus’ presence beside him. Severus leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips.

            “Hey, love. Did you sleep well?”

            Harry opened his eyes weakly, still a little drowsy frm the sedatives as he nodded slowly.

            “I got you something,” Severus said as he picked up the rose and gave it to Harry, stroking his hair gently.

            Harry took the rose and sniffed it a while, fresh tears poured from his green eyes as memories of his miscarriage started to hit home again.

            “Shh…Once you heal, we will try for another child,” He gently pressed his lips to Harry’s forehead. “Please, don’t cry.”

            “You must hate me…” Harry covered his eyes with his arm, sobbing. “I couldn’t even protect our baby…”

            “I could never hate you, Harry,” Severus sat beside him and pulled him close. “Things happen, we make poor choices, but that does not mean it was our fault. I should have gotten off earlier and got you sooner.”

            Harry shook his head, “I knew I should have let Neville and Colin accompany me, but I chose to decline. I should’ve seen it coming…” he trembled in his sobs. “I shouldn’t even be out. I knew Grandpa Albus told us to keep my rescue under the wraps so that the Ministry wouldn’t try to take me away, but I didn’t listen. I had to be so bloody adventurous…You might as well leave a troublesome person like me while you’re still at it…Everything dies around me anyway…Ever since…since I was a slave and you bought me, nothing good has ever happened to you…I brought you nothing but bad luck…”

            “Don’t you dare! Don’t you dare say that to me!” Severus pulled Harry’s chin up and looked at him straight in the eye. “Who was it who saved me from myself? Who got me back on my feet? Who was it that made me the happiest I have ever been in such a long time? That was you, Harry. You saved me. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me, Harry, so don’t sell yourself short, because I will not have it!”

            So saying, Severus pulled him close and kissed him gently, but conveying all his love in that kiss. Harry sobbed in the kiss, taking in all the love Severus gave him, wrapping his arms around him.

            “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…I’m sorry I killed our baby…”

            Severus kissed harder, not wanting to hear Harry blame himself. He caressed Harry’s cheek and his neck before pulling back.

            “You did not kill the baby, love,” Severus held him close. “The bastard Wormtail is the one to blame. Not you. Don’t blame yourself anymore.”

            “He…He said he was doing this…to…to help me…I don’t understand…”

            “What? Help you? What kind of rubbish is that? When I see him, I am going to slit his throat…”

            “My, my, Mr. Snape, words like that could get you arrested there.”

            Severus looked up and his breath almost hitched to see Cornelius Fudge entering the ward in all his high and mighty air, with Barty Crouch Sr. and Dolores Umbridge and a few Aurors tailing behind his wake. Instinctively, Severus wrapped his arms around Harry protectively as he glared the Ministry members down. Harry could only whimper and cling onto Severus for dear life, begging hard in his heart that they would not do what he feared they might do.

            “What the hell are you doing here?” Severus growled. “How dare you show your face in front of us?”

            “Tsk, tsk,” Dolores shook her head in disapproval. “Such temper. You’re just proving us more that you are a bad influence to the boy.”

            “And why ask what is already known?” Cornelius smirked. “We have received intelligence that Harry is no longer a prisoner of Voldemort and we have a warrant to allow us to take the boy. After all, you must remember what was already decided in the Wizengamot court about the boy being under the custody of the state.”

            “Who was your intelligence?! I demand to know!”

            “You have no right to know,” Dolores snorted. “The person deserves the right to be unnamed. Now hand over the boy, Mr. Snape.”

            “Harry is not a thing you can just toss around and own!” Severus shouted. “He is my lover and soon to be my wife! I will not allow you to take him away from me!”

            “That is absurd,” Barty Crouch Sr. scoffed. “You know the rules: You cannot marry a minor without parental consent, and since Dumbledore is no longer his legal guardian and we are the law, your union is forbidden.”

            “Haven’t you done enough by separating us?! He just had a miscarriage, no thanks to that monster’s lackey Wormtail! He killed our child and now you want to take him away from me again! Have you no heart?!”

            “Is that what happened there?” Dolores let out the annoying laugh she always did when she was delighted. “Like Minister Fudge said, he’s done us a favour. Now we don’t have to dirty our hands in aborting the filthy thing.”

            “You will regret saying that, you bitch!!”

            Severus brandished out his wand and was about to strike when a couple of the Aurors came up to block him, disarming him in the process. As the Aurors took him down and subdued him with their wands at his jugular, Cornelius gestured Barty Crouch Sr. and the rest of the Aurors to go and take Harry, ignoring the ex-Potions Master and the boy’s protests and was about to drag the boy out of bed when all the Aurors were hit with the Body-Bind Curse. Everyone turned to see Ard-Rí Constantine with his wand brandished as he came close to them with his medi-kit.

            “What in the name of Merlin is going on around here?” Ard-Rí Constantine demanded.

            “Now, now, dear doctor, there is no need for violence,” Barty Crouch Sr. tried to calm the medi-wizard down but was met with the latter’s glare.

            “You started it, and I will not have violence in this house of healing. Now what are you doing to the poor lad? He needs his rest. He just a very unfortunate accident.”

            “Yes, yes, we know,” Dolores grumbled impatiently. “He just lost his child. Big deal. We are here to take him back into custody. He belongs to the state. We are only doing our job.”

            “Yeah?” Ard-Rí Constantine raised a brow as he barely even bat an eyelid at one of the Aurors who was subduing Severus pointing his wand at him. “Well, I am doing my job as well, and my job is to make sure that the boy is to receive adequate rest after a grueling experience.”

            “We have clearance!” Cornelius growled, taking out the warrant from his robes to show the medi-wizard. “We have a warrant to take the child away! Are you trying to go against the Ministry?”

            “I could care less about your pompous farce,” Ard-Rí Constantine growled as he burnt the warrant with a spell, earning a yelp of shock from the minister. “Are you going to let me do my job or do you want me to reveal it to the general public that the Ministry does not care about the wellbeing and the health of a little child and be held responsible for any health complications that might occur to him?”

            The ministers looked at him venomously for a good long minute before finally releasing the Aurors’ Body-Bind Curse and jerked their heads to tell them to release Severus. Severus quickly got up and held Harry close, while Cornelius stomped up to the medi-wizard.

            “I know you, Ard-Rí Constantine. I know you and your family history very well,” Cornelius sneered. “Mark my words, you may be descended by the Scottish High-Kings, but only by name, and names will not help you save your life,” he then turned to Severus, “You may have gotten away this time, but mark my words, you and the boy are not out of the loop yet. Harry is still under state custody and remains that way unless I say otherwise. These Aurors,” he gestured at the said party, “will be here standing guard until the boy recovers, and by then, he will come with us whether you like it or not. Set him one foot outside without their permission and its Azkaban for you.”

            With that, they left, leaving the Aurors to sit on guard outside the ward. Ard-Rí Constantine rolled his eyes and went to Harry, checking his vitals.

            “Poor little lad,” Ard-Rí Constantine mused. “You must be terrified. There, there, the big bad ministers aren’t here anymore.”

            “But…But they said they’ll come back for me once I got better…” Harry whined in fear.

            “Shh, I’m here, love,” Severus said as he caressed Harry’s head, kissing him. “If they dare to lay a finger on you, I’ll show them what for.”

            “I know this may sound like a silly question but, how are you feeling right now?” Ard-Rí Constantine asked.

            “I…” Harry bit his lip, still sobbing bt not so badly now. “I wanna see our baby…”

            “I don’t think that would be good. I don’t want to make you anymore upset than you already are.”

            “I promise the next child will be right next to you,” Severus said. “Always.”

            “But…But I wanna hold it in my arms…say my goodbyes…” Harry whimpered. “I wanna at least bury it with my own hands…”

            Severus’ heart ached to see his little beloved like this. Looking up pleadingly at Ard-Rí Constantine, the medi-wizard finally relented.

            “Alright, alright. I was wondering what to do with it anyway,” Ard-Rí Constantine disappeared from the ward for a while and came back with something that looked like a handheld-sized mini-chest to Severus. “I’ve wrapped it up nice and good and put it in here, but it will have to go to the morgue soon. It can only be kept for so long before it starts to smell. Its genitals are not fully developed yet, but I have a feeling it is a little girl.”

            “Thank you,” Severus took the chest from him. “When can Harry go home?”

            “He’s still a little too weak from the blood loss, but I suppose you can take him home tomorrow,” Ard-Rí Constantine took a glance outside. “Unfortunately that would mean allowing them to take the poor lad. Normally when a patient suffering from miscarriage is discharged, they are advised to be kept him in bed for a couple or more days, but I’ll try to get the medi-wizards and witches here to stall for his release as long as possible. That is the best I can do. Try to be with him as much as possible. He’ll need it.”

            “Understood,” Severus handed the chest to Harry. “Hear that, love? It’s a little girl.”

            Harry nodded and took the chest, cradling it in his arms, and curling up around it like a cat would with its young.

            “You rest well now, alright?” Severus put his arm around Harry and nuzzled him gently. “I will be back soon.”

            As Severus left the room, Harry held the chest protectively until he went back to a dreamless sleep.


	83. Chapter 83

            All of the ministers of the branch ministries were gathered together in their respective seats along long tables like the ones in the Great Hall, chattering busily but quietly to each other about what was in store for them. Every ministers of every corner of the wizarding world was gathered there: Europe (which includes a small community in Vatican City and certain third world countries under Europe), North and South America, U.S.A., Asia (which were the very few secluded wizards and witches the Oden hawker Hiroshi the kitsune had spoke back in Romania), India, Oceania (regions like Papua New Guinea), Africa and Ancient Near East (Egypt and Babylonia). The DA members sat at their seats designated for them to represent Albus’ party and were overwhelmed at just how many important people they were surrounded with.

            After the announcement to the DA members from Beck’s note on the secret meeting, they were on their toes all day, almost unable to contain their excitement and their disbelief that they were invited to participate in such revolutionary gathering. They thought they were probably going to some fancy mansion/manor or maybe even a shady secret hall of sorts, but they were surprised to find that they were led to the infamous Chamber of Secrets hidden within the undergrowth of Hogwarts and can only be located and entered via Moaning Myrtle’s haunted toilet. Apparently, back in the olden days when the four founders of Hogwarts was still around, Salazar Slytherin had been much of a recluse at heart and was rumoured to have a Basilisk for a pet within this chambers, which is, of course, an illegal animal to have as pets because of its killing gaze, literally. After Salazar passed on and a few incidents occurred within the school involving people being Petrified, Albus—still a professor at the time—tracked down the Basilisk along with several trained Magical Creature Masters and managed to kill it before it could do anymore damage and the existence of this chamber kept exclusively among the Hogwarts staff.

            Now here they were, all ready and all filled with mixed emotions they could not even begin to describe about this entire affair, waiting for Albus and the rest of the Hogwarts’ staff’s appearance along with the Order.

            “Psst!” Alicia leaned towards Marietta, nudging her a little. “Check out that minister. Isn’t he just the cutest thing?”

            “What? You mean the one from Italy?” Marietta looked at where she was gesturing.

            “No! The one beside him. The one from Greece. Doesn’t he look a mite bit like Viktor Krum and Gilderoy Lockhart divided by two?”

            “Oh wow, you’re right!” Angelina cut in. “That’s totally my kinda guy!”

            “I know, right?” Alicia could barely contain her squeal. “He’s such a hottie!”

            “Viktor Krum and Gilderoy Lockhart divided by two?” Anthony raised a brow. “How does that come about?”

            “I personally think that one from Japan is good-looking,” Parvati whispered, ignoring Anthony’s comment. “He looks like the Chaser from Toyohashi Tengu.”

            “No way!” Padma protested. “The Hungarian minister is much better!”

            “Girls!” Hermione hissed. “We’re not here for boy-shopping!”

            “That’s coz you’re already stuck with Ron,” Marietta rolled her eyes.

            “What does that suppose to mean?” Ron asked, clearly offended.

            “Shh~!” Lil shushed them. “They’re here!”

            A hush soon ran through the room as Albus led the Hogwarts staff and the Order, along with their own Ministry members that have yet to be corrupted, collected using the efficient eye of Moody, to the chamber and seated them all at the seats that represent Albus’ party. Beck came in last and nodded in acknowledgement at the DA members who waved slightly at her. As soon as everyone was seated, Albus remained standing to address everyone in the room.

            “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you all for coming to this secret meeting. I hope I have not caught you in your inconvenience. If I have, I apologize beforehand,” Albus adjusted his half-mooned glasses before continuing. “Now, to the matter at hand. I’m sure that all of you have been wondering why is it that we have gathered here in such secrecy and in a place such as this, no doubt. What I am about to tell you is strictly confidential and will not leave this room under any circumstances until I say so.”

            “Spare the niceties there, Dumbledore,” the French minister spoke with a thick French accent. “Please get on with it.”

            Albus nodded and gestured Lil and Beck to stand up and from there, the two took over to repeat whatever they had said to the Order and the prophesied people in question to the entire audience present in the chamber. By the time they were done, everyone was starting to have mixed emotions and were exchanging incredulous looks at each other, chattering in excited hushed tones amongst themselves.

            “This is outrageous!” someone from the Ministry itself stood up. “There is no way the Ministry would want to cover up something so big!”

            “Yeah!” another one stood up as well. “We admit that the Ministry and their system is not the best system in the world, but they have done nothing but keeping order throughout the wizarding world! To go to such extremes just to prevent a prophecy from happening and harm a child so young…it’s just inconceivable!”

            “Hah! You would naturally say that,” an Indian minister snorted. “Since you are from the Ministry itself, I wouldn’t be surprised that you would want to speak on their behalf. I knew there had been something fishy going on within the politics of your Ministry; I just didn’t think it would be that of a big scale.”

            “How dare you?! How would you understand from being half across the world?” the Ministry member grumbled, ensuing the rest to stand up and start debating amongst themselves. The DA members were shocked, and above all, afraid, as they watched the adults bicker and yell at each other, some threatening to brandish their wands out to probably murder each other.

            “SILENCE!!!”

            Everyone stopped in their tracks to turn and see Albus glaring at them sternly, his wand at his throat probably with a spell to amplify his voice across the chamber to catch everyone’s attention. It was the first for the DA members to see such a face as well for they have always known Albus to have a grandfatherly approach to things and never once raise his voice. Only the Hogwarts staff and the Order, and Lil and Beck, did not waver from that face as they waited for everyone to get the picture. A few moments of looking at Albus’ stern face, the reality of the situation sunk into them and they all took their seats awkwardly.

            “Now that we have everyone’s attention, we would like to return to the matter at hand,” Albus softened his facial expression once he lowered the wand from his throat. “You have heard the story that was given to you by Lillian Rome and Rebecca Evans. I know this may come as a bit of a shock to you, but we would like to have you all to gather round and agree to boycott the Ministry.”

            “Boycott the Ministry?” an Egyptian minister exclaimed.

            “Are you out of your mind?” an African minister, with his thick African accent, joined in.

            “You are asking us to boycott _the_ Ministry of Magic,” an American minister chided. “And might I remind you that it is _the_ people that run this entire wizarding world! You’re basically asking us to take down the government!”

            “Yes, that is what we are requesting you to do, in a nutshell,” Beck replied calmly.

            “Bloody hell!” a Scottish minister said in a bemused tone, almost in a Ron fashion. “This goes against everything that we have been told _not_ to do in politics.”

            “You might as well ask us to dig our grave while you’re at it, Dumbledore,” a Slovenian minister groaned.

            “Unfortunately we will have to break the rules,” Albus said. “As they have already broken once too many times. A killer that they have indirectly created is on the loose, and several young children are in danger of being taken into their clutches. So far they have yet to know about young Malfoy and his mate and their children because they are under protection of Lord Sirius Black who had always maintain under the Ministry’s low radar, but with the arrest of Malfoy’s father, who was an accomplice to Voldemort and is currently under the charge of harbouring a fugitive, kidnapping and raping a minor, and being an accessory to a murderer’s schemes, their hiding place are now being compromised because of the possible revealing from the father, and right now, Harry is under the threat of being taken away by the Ministry because they have custody claim over him. Any more delays and they will soon have the upper hand before we even begin to try and accuse them of anything. Your help right now is greatly appreciated.”

            “If the hiding place of this Malfoy and his family you speak of are being compromised, what are you all doing about it right now?” a Serbian minister spoke up. “Surely the Ministry would not take lightly of him bearing the child of a cursed being, let alone when they are part of the prophecy.”

            “At the moment, I am putting my Auror cousin Tonks in charge of baby-sitting Draco and the half-wolf and the cubs,” Sirius said. “Tonks and I are known by many to be estranged relatives and not really that close ever since my family had booted her mother out of the family tree, so they would not think of looking for him there. My house was searched, obviously, as soon as Lucius was said to be arrested in my property—no doubt he blabbed it to the Ministry while under custody—and all my loyal hired help were interrogated, but they had been sworn to secrecy, though I have a feeling they did so for the sake of the brat and not for me, and told them nothing. And since Tonks headed the search to keep up appearance to the Ministry, no one gave a second thought of her harbouring the brat under her wing. Personally I think maybe they’re just too lazy to wind the screws of their brain functions to think that an Auror could be possible suspects.”

            “I must admit I do enjoy the company,” Tonks smiled a little. “After all, I _am_ christened as the babies’ godmother. But it also an honour for me to protect them with my life, since the Ministry will stop at nothing to have them terminated one way or another. I wouldn’t put it past them to abort the children just as they heartlessly decided to want to abort Harry’s child for the sake of a prophecy.”

            “What of the Potter child?” a Romanian minister asked. “What is his current status?”

            “He is currently recovering at St. Mungo after an encounter with Voldemort’s minion, resulting to his miscarriage,” Beck replied sadly, resulting into silent gasps from the DA members. “Of course, the Ministry knew right away that he had been rescued from the clutches of that monster and had came to claim their right to take him away into their custody. We have tried to prevent them from knowing because we fear this might happen, but apparently someone must’ve tipped them off anonymously.”

            “His personal physician, Ard-Rí Constantine, had persuaded the St. Mungo’s staff to keep Harry in the hospital as long as possible,” Albus replied. “They promised to stall them as much as they can, but with the Ministry Aurors situated outside his ward and observing him, there is no telling when they will figure out the ruse and take him away. He had been through enough; he doesn’t need another blow like this, which is why we must act quickly to bring them down before that happens.”

            “Gomenasai,” a Japanese witch said in a wistful voice but with a strong Japanese accent. “Even so this is a problem that concerns of you. We of the Asian committee cannot be part of this. It would probably be better if we allow the Ministry to continue this fiasco.”

            “Agreed,” a Chinese wizard replied in his Chinese accent. “We have been living in seclusion for many years without trouble. We have done our duty in cleansing people of their magical powers because our culture does not allow mortals to possess powers that are meant for the gods. We do not wish to have our well-hidden secret be exposed by this prophecy.”

            “How could you say that?!” Hermione suddenly stood up, clearly upset at the nonchalant way the Asian party was taking this situation. “This is our friend we’re talking about here! Are you willing to allow the Ministry to do as they like, killing thousands of innocents to preserve your lifestyle?!”

            “It is troubling at most,” a Vietnamese witch replied. “Even worse, regrettable. But if it is the fate of the children to endure such hardships, there is nothing much we can do. Our wizarding world is already under threat as it is.”

            “Then that makes you no different than those heartless Ministry members themselves!! How can you be so selfish?!”

            “Sunimasen,” the Japanese witch could only bow.

            A long pause ensued before Beck turned to the Asian party and voiced out, “You claim to live in seclusion, you say?”

            All the Asian party nodded.

            “You say you do so because Muggles condemned those who are magical to be having the power of the gods, deeming them unworthy and must be eradicated, and you are tasked to remove them of their magic, correct?”

            Another nod.

            “Then you admit that you are committing genocide, which is what Voldemort is doing right now to all the non-purebloods.”

            Another nod, hesitant this time.

            “Then you do realize that you will be deemed no different than Voldemort, and also confirming Muggles’ prejudice on you to be unworthy of possessing powers meant for the gods because of you using it to terminate your own people. Is that the burden you wish to carry for the rest of your secluded life?”

            The Asian party looked at each other awkwardly, not knowing what to rebut against this harsh truth.

            “The Ministry is probably the most to blame by allowing you live in such conditions, not allowing your people to understand your nature and letting those Muggles think so poorly of your kind and let you suffer. They are supposed to run the entire wizarding world and look for everyone’s wellbeing, not allowing you to live like this.”

            “I know it is hard to stomach for all of you,” Albus came into the picture. “And I know some of you are still traumatized and apprehensive about the prophecy, given that we have been subjected to the harsh treatment of the Muggles in the past, the Salem Witch Hunt being the worst of its kind. But times have changed since then. There are more and more Muggle-borns in this era and more Muggles are accepting the reality of the fact that we do exist, judging by the number of half-wizards and witches we have within the centuries. Besides, I am sure that deep in your hearts, you are tired of this seclusion and want to get along with the Muggles and co-exist with them, to let them understand you and accept you rather than having to come up with millions of excuses and spells to cover your tracks. It may be a hard process for all of us, but if this prophecy had been made, then it must mean it is time for us to embrace the new future ahead of us. After all, as our Vietnamese representative have said, if it is the fate of the children to endure the Ministry’s wrath, what if it is also our fate to eventually come to terms and reveal ourselves to them and build a better future? Surely you must have considered that.”

            Everyone in the audience looked at each other, murmuring hesitant agreements and nodding their heads as they knew one way or another, the old man spoke the truth.

            “Well said, Dumbledore. Spoken like a true Minister and a charismatic Headmaster.”

            Everyone turned to see Rita Skeeter, who was sitting at the back of the chamber, along with some of her colleagues and a number of people working under every well-known press possible. Even Luna’s father was there, who gave his daughter a smile and a wave, earning a rather surprised look, which was very rare, from her.

            “What? The press is here?” Beck was shocked to see them as they revealed themselves one by one, taking out their cameras and flashing at everyone present now that their presence were made known. “How did they…?”

            “I invited them here,” Kingsley admitted. “I used a temporary glamour spell to hide their appearance to sneak them in here. Sorry for not telling you sooner, but we’re going to need all the help we can get to bring down the Ministry, and nothing beats the power of the media.”

            “You said it, Shacklebolt!” someone from the Howler’s Hail chirped.

            “Besides, we’ve been hearing little birds chirping all around the area for a while, thanks to certain people who heard it from so-called little children,” Rita’s colleague from the Daily Prophet stole a look at the DA member. “Now I see what they mean.”

            “Thank you,” Albus nodded. “We appreciate your participation in this. Perhaps it is time to bring it out in the open to gain a foothold anyway. You can quote on everything that has been said here, just so long as you get the facts and names right, and no embellishments or fabrications.”

            The DA members held back a grin as they had a feeling he was targeting Rita Skeeter.

            The meeting carried on well through the night, ending with the branch ministries favouring for the idea of boycotting the Ministry, including the Asian party who were previously the most apprehensive ones. Before they adjourned, Albus gave the press permission to start fanning the flames of doubt to the public with their findings, and encouraged everyone in the audience to do their part in gathering as much manpower as they can to see through this mission.

            “This is probably the most exciting gathering we’ve ever had since the last Yule Ball,” Cedric commented as he, along with the DA members, followed behind the adults as they left the Chamber of Secrets.

            The rest couldn’t agree more.

\--:--

            “…and that is all that had happened.”

            A Victorian-themed lounge was warmly lit by the fire as a few men and women dressed in robes of very rare quality sat together to listen what the strawberry-blonde had to say. By the time she was done, they were all in a contemplative mood, but were not far from intrigue.

            “Hmm, a rather interesting development,” one of the women commented. “What say you, my friends?”

            A long pause ensued before one of the men chuckled quietly as he sipped his tea.

            “I suppose it is time we make a debut appearance then.”


	84. Chapter 84

            It had been about 2 weeks since the meeting at the Chamber of Secrets between the Order and the branch ministries. During those 2 weeks, the press had been working hard to print out everything they have recorded in the meeting, publishing and distributing it out to every literate citizen of the wizarding world. Those who had heard the scandal via rumours spread by the DA members were surprised to find out that it was true, and those who did not know of the scandal at all were utterly shocked, some being in denial over this. Nevertheless it caused a huge uproar within the wizarding world and the public was starting to demand answers.

            Albus confirmed all the statements to be true during a public press conference, while the Ministry, of course, denied everything, accusing Albus of it being his propaganda to take over Cornelius’ spot as Head Minister. The branch ministries did their best to give their support over Albus’ claim and gathered as much supporters of his cause as possible to back him up, along with evidence they have yet to reveal from their secret investigations on the Ministry scandal. Two sides began to emerge: one who believes and supports Albus (which was quite big in numbers) and one who believes in the so-called innocence of the Ministry, and the two powers went head to head with their sides of the story and argued over that during the press conference until the Ministry, under pressure of the demanding public, was forced to accept a public court hearing that will happen in another 2 weeks from now to determine the truth. Thankfully Tonks had hidden Draco and his family well as she pride herself in living in seclusion away from the noisy civilization and that no one suspected her of harbouring them, and most of the people in St. Mungo believed in Albus and did all their power to keep Severus and Harry out of harm’s way of those who did not, especially the Aurors whose loyalty were not wavered despite the news and continued to remain vigilant at their post, waiting for the day they will take Harry back to the Ministry’s custody.

            But none of that hullabaloo was important to Harry than his miscarriage. Harry’s body may have healed, but his heart has not. He would occasionally leave his ward to go to the morgue (under the Aurors’ scrutiny, of course) and stay at the morgue drawer where the baby was kept, sometimes all day, and would almost always cry his eyes out. He felt so guilty for not being able to protect the baby he and Severus created, and he felt even worse when he remembered the incident that led to it. It was all his fault, even though he knew everyone who visited him, Hermione and Ron included, were telling him not just to make him feel better.

            Severus, on the other hand, was trying to be a good fiancé. He had held off all work—people wouldn’t mind anyway, what with the hype in the scandal made public—the first week and just held Harry, all the while keeping on his toes on the Aurors and worrying about anyone and everyone who comes into the ward, afraid that they might be from the Ministry to take his little beloved away. The second week he brought him something every day. Monday had been two bouquets of red roses, Tuesday was a box of gourmet chocolates, Wednesday was a locket that had his and Harry’s picture on either side and Thursday was another two dozen of red roses to replace the last two. On that Friday, Severus told Harry that it was going to be special and had left Harry with that thought before going to the special district within Hogmeade to get him what he wanted.

            Unfortunately Harry himself also had a plan up his sleeves. He pretended to go to the bathroom, allowing the Aurors to tail him before he somehow managed to slip out quietly via crawling past a number of cubicles and used a few people who came into the bathroom as a shield to hide him from the Aurors’ vision, taking advantage of his small frame. He then went to the potions storeroom where they kept all the supplies of potions for medicinal use. He remembered how the impregnation potion looked like the last time he drank it, and remembered about Ard-Rí Constantine telling him how usually these potions are available sometimes in hospitals in the restricted area. He searched high and low, taking care that no one caught him in there, until he found what he was looking for. Opening the bottle, he took a deep breath to compose himself and despite his conscience warning him against it, his urge to make another baby was stronger as he did a bottoms-up.

            No sooner had he swallowed the last drop, his body felt as if it was on fire. He let out a wordless scream as he fell to the ground, writhing around as if he was hit by the Cruciatus curse, foaming and bleeding in the mouth. The crash that came as he dropped the bottle alerted a medi-witch who was on rounds duty and found him there, alerting others to help her admit him to the emergency ward. Ard-Rí Constantine was called in since he was his acting physician while they quickly administered the antidote to neutralize the excess potions and made Harry drink it.

            Severus was surveying around the shop he had intended to go and had just made his purchase when he felt a sort of unsettling tug in his chest, like a bit of a heartburn that just won’t go away. Pocketing his bought item, he quickly got into his carriage and told the driver to go at top speed back to the infirmary. Once he was there, the medi-wizards and witches and Ard-Rí Constantine had just finished doing what they could to help Harry and he quickly went over, slowly touching Harry’s cheek.

            “Harry…” Severus whispered in a trembling voice, his heart felt like it broke into a million pieces at upon seeing his little beloved’s cold and clammy face. Without taking his eyes away from him, he asked Ard-Rí Constantine, “Wh…What happened to him…?”

            “He was found in the potions storeroom almost dying of poisoning,” Ard-Rí Constantine explained. “Apparently he had ingested the entire content of the impregnation potion that you two had last time. He is alright. We managed to neutralize most of the potion he had ingested, and got him to induce vomiting to let the rest out, but the effect of ingesting the entire content was the femina partim phenomenon. It has taken effect, and it’s most likely permanent because of the highly concentrated dosage he had taken.”  
            Severus nodded weakly. He didn’t care what Harry would turn out, as long as he was alive and well. He will help him pull through, no matter how long it took.

            “When will he wake up?”

            “I’ve given him some sedatives, but he should be awake in a couple more hours later,” Ard-Rí Constantine sighed and shook his head. “It is a wonder he was able to bypass the Aurors’ security and managed to sneak away from them to get to the potions storeroom. This just maybe my guessing, but I think maybe Harry was so desperate to get pregnant again that he had taken it without knowing that it must be taken by both parties and diluted via drink. He…probably wanted to bring back the child that he lost.”

            “I…suppose he did,” Severus looked sadly at Harry. “I have suspected that he never…really got over it…W…Will there be any other side effects? Any problems?”

            “He will be a little feverish for a few days because of the femina partim growth, and he might have a bit of lack of bladder control because his body is trying to adjust to peeing in a different way, so I’d suggest that he’d be on pull-ups for a week at most. Then after that, he’ll be fine, though I might issue some hormone potions to help regulate his body to accept this permanent change.”

            “Thank you, Ard-Rí Constantine. May I have some time with him alone?”

            “Sure. Take all the time you need.”

            Once they were gone, he fell to the floor, clutching Harry’s hand and started to cry both in agony and relief, part of him glad that his little beloved was alright and nothing permanently life-threatening had happened to him, and part of him angry at both Harry and himself for this tragedy that brought this upon them. Harry continued to sleep off the sedatives for the time frame Ard-Rí Constantine predicted, then slowly stirred, and the first thing he saw was Severus’ red sodden eyes.

            “S…Sev…?” Harry whimpered a little as he could tell from Severus’ frowning face that he was in trouble.

            “If you ever do anything that stupid again I will…I will…” Severus started off with a stern voice before finally caving into his pain, hugging Harry close. How could he stay mad at him when all he wanted was for him to be alright? “Oh god, Harry…I thought…I thought you were trying to…to kill yourself. Th…That you were so unhappy with your life.”

            “I didn’t…I didn’t mean to…I was unhappy with myself. I…I wanted so badly to give you another child, to have a sense that I have brought back the child we’ve lost…I didn’t think that…Oh god…I’m so sorry…” Harry started sobbing, burying his face into Severus’ chest.

            “Then you should have talked with me. I would’ve tried everything in my power to help you through with this,” Severus held him and kissed his head. “You were in no shape to be pregnant again and Ard-Rí Constantine had advised that you recuperate for at least 6 months before trying again, but I really do want our baby back. I want to start our family again, but I never wanted you to resort to this.”

            Harry looked up at him tear-filled, realizing how stupid he had been to shoulder everything. More tears poured as he wailed in Severus’ arms, apologizing over and over again. Severus kept holding him close, allowing him to let it all out as he stroked his back to calm his cries.

            “It’s all over. It’s OK, my beloved. I just want you to get healed. Ard-Rí Constantine says that because you drank the entire impregnation potion, you are now having the femina partim phenomenon, meaning you now have a vagina. You are a pussy boy permanently,” Severus kissed his cheek. “There are a few side effects but nothing we can’t handle.”

            “Umm…OK…So…I am really a full-fledged pussy boy now?” Harry blushed as he calmed down some.

            “I’m afraid so, but not that I’m complaining,” Severus grinned a little. “Would you mind if I look at it?”

            Harry swallowed nervously, his face going redder as he made sure no one was in the room before lifting the covers and the hospital gown to look at his crotch, which no longer sported the dick he saw after his miscarriage flushed the potion effects out, but the pussy he had gotten used to seeing ever since he first discovered it back at Kym. Severus saw it and patted Harry’s head.

            “I think you look perfect either way,” Severus said. “Although to be honest, I’ve grown accustomed to you having a vagina than a penis. I can’t wait to show you that.”

            “I want you to be happy. I’m happy when you’re happy. I love you, Sev.”

            “Love you too.”

            So saying, Severus pulled him close kissing him with passion. Harry kissed him back with the same passion, not realizing that he didn’t have his bladder control yet as he had an “accident”. Severus broke the kiss and chuckled.

            “That is one of the side effects.” Severus said before casting a cleaning spell.

            “Damn,” Harry blushed. “Now I feel like a baby again.”

            “I don’t mind babying you,” Severus grinned at Harry’s pout.

            “How long will this last?”

            “A few days, then you will be fine.”

            “OK. Do…Do I have to wear a diaper or something?”

            “Yes,” Severus nodded. “But only for a week, I promise.”

            “A week? I’m gonna be a baby for a week,” Harry groaned and covered his face in embarrassment.

            “At least you get to have the feel of being the Master for a while, letting me serve you for the rest of the week.”

            “Well, I guess I can put up with it,” Harry smiled bashfully, grinning at the Aurors who have returned from searching for him and glared at him grudgingly before returning to their posts. “I’ve heard people talking about the Ministry scandal. Has Grandpa Albus finally blown this thing wide open?”

            “It seems so. It had been a hectic two weeks and sides were obviously taken,” Severus rolled his eyes. “Now it seems that Albus has managed to push the Ministry into the corner and forced them to face trial, though I also have a feeling that the Ministry will stop at nothing to cover it up and tie up loose ends. I hope that whatever Albus got against the Ministry to secure a winning case, he better keep it safe and secure, because there will be no doubt that the Ministry is going to hunt every nook and cranny to find it and destroy it.”

            “I hope so too. I really do hope everything will turn out alright.”


	85. Chapter 85

            Remus was holding Amarinth and she would not stop crying. The hired help of Tonks winced a little at how something so small can make such a loud noise. Draco finished changing Abigail’s diapers, feeling glad that they have finally been rid of the incubator after Tonk’s personal physician checked on them and deemed them ready to be out in the open.

            “Sorry it took so long, Remy,” Draco passed Amarinth to Remus. “Here, gimme Amarinth.”

            “Shh, little girl,” Remus gave Amarinth to Draco and took Abigail who was ready for a nap. “Don’t be. She is my baby girl too.”

            “As she is mine, though I can tell you haven’t been much of a hand in babies,” Draco chuckled, hushing Amarinth and started changing her diapers. “I thought you were skilled with children.”

            “I’m only better with children that are way past the diaper age, I’m afraid. During my services as a slave to Masters and Mistresses with families, I have yet to encounter Young Masters and Mistresses below the age of 5. They all had nannies to look after, never really allowed me to go near them. Bad influence or something.”

            “Ah, that explains it,” Draco nodded as he finished changing the diapers. “There, boo-boo all gone now, Amarinth, so don’t give your father anymore tantrum trouble, OK?”

            As Remus watched Draco nuzzling their little girl and peppered kisses on her cheeks, he thought back about the past few weeks when they first got here. He remembered being in the study with Sirius and Paprika, enjoying the peace and quiet and some light supper while watching Draco hum the babies to sleep by the fire when Tonks made a secret firecall to warn them that their position has been compromised. Apparently Lucius, while under custody, had been rambling about Sirius kidnapping his son and how he allowed Draco to fraternize with a cursed being and have children, and put the blame of not having Remus sterilized all on Sirius instead. The Ministry knew then that their worst fears of the child of dark being born and had quickly assembled the Auror troops to go on a so-called search-and-rescue mission.

            Thankfully, Tonks had overheard of this and volunteered to head the search, thus giving her a chance to warn them beforehand and offer her home as their new hideout. They quickly gathered whatever belongings they had and made a run for it, Floo-ing immediately to Tonks’ home and settled in staying at a room at the far end of the house closest to a hidden attic where they could hide if ever a worse-case scenario happens. Before the Auror troops came, Sirius had gathered all the hired help including Paprika and swore into secrecy, telling them never to reveal the truth about Draco and his family being in here. The hired help did not need to be told twice; they loved their little Young Master too much to betray him, and Remus had been the best of friends with them while the cubs had been nothing but family to them. There was no way they would let the Aurors take them away.

            So as the troops searched high and low, they kept to themselves and mum was the word for them when they were interrogated by a small group of Aurors, denying any of Draco and his family’s existence. Luckily for them, Tonks stopped them from using Veritaserum on them with the excuse that they must have court warrant and under the supervision of a Wizengamot court member to interrogate a lower-class citizen using that potion. Soon they were in the clear and Draco and the family had been hiding out in Tonks’ place ever since. Tonks’ hired help were very accommodating and welcomed them with open arms, loyal to their Mistress’s orders of keeping their existence in the household quiet.

            “Dang. You’re so good with them, love,” Remus kissed his cheek. “You’re a perfect mother. Makes me wonder if you’re really the only child in the family.”

            “Well, I try my best. Though I’m surprised how natural it comes to me,” Draco scratched his chin bashfully. “Must be what they call maternal instincts.”

            “Mmm, yes,” Remus kissed his cheek again. “Please tell me you are going to breast feed them again.”

            “Well, Mrs. Sinistra advised me to breastfeed until they’re at least 1 year old to maximize their health, so yeah, I guess I’ll be giving them tits service for now.”

            “Like in the next…say…five minutes?” Remus said, leering at him like a wolf in heat.

            “Not now, you horny toad,” Draco pouted and pushed his face away. “It’s not time for the twins’ meal yet.”

            “Then can your husband feed?" Remus asked seductively, going back in for a kiss on his neck.

            “No, you’re too old for it.”

            Draco pushed him away, but in truth it was just to tease him; he wanted Remus to manhandle him. It had been so long since they remained abstinent and frankly, he himself was getting tired of blowjobs and handjobs. Remus got the idea and put Abigail in her crib and kissed her. He also took Amarinth from Draco’s arms and put her in the crib too beside her sister. He then grabbed Draco up, threw him over his shoulder and walked out of the room.

            “I said your mate wants nourishment. And he will get it.”

            “Hey~! Stop it~! You horny toad~!” Draco kicked his legs in the air n beating his back, but not really meaning it, because he was laughing while doing it.

            “No,” Remus grinned as he threw him on the bed. “I want sex. Undress.”

            Draco stuck out his tongue like a little kid, “Make me.”

            Remus growled in lust and pulled Draco’s shirt right off his back “Pants. Or I will rip them off.”

            Draco grinned, knowing that Remus would not do him real harm as he deliberately takes the pants off slowly. Remus growled again and pulled them off, leaving Draco naked.

            “You are gorgeous, my mate,” Remus breathed, drinking in his sight.

            “Really? Are you sure you’re not saying that to make me happy. I know I’ve gained weight from the pregnancy.”

            “I couldn’t care less,” Remus licked his lips and got on the bed, pushing Draco down, licking around his nipples.

            “So you…ahh!” Draco whined, his fingers curled in Remus’ hair as he suckled him. “You don’t c-care if I become a fat-ass…? Mmh…!”

            “I would rather you not get too big you cannot function. But they say sex is the best exercise,” Remus said as he licked up to his neck.

            “Then perhaps I do need the exercise,” Draco whimpered as he felt Remus’ tongue running along his neck.

            “I will make sure,” Remus kissed his neck and rubbed against him. “You are going to ride me. Ride me like there is no tomorrow. When you get tired I am going to fuck you, face to face until you come. Then I am stay in you and kiss you until I am hard again and fuck you again. I am going to fill you up so much that you will overflow.”

            “Mmm…That really sparks off imagination there, my mate. Do your worst.”

            So saying, Draco grabbed both their cocks together and started stroking, while he leaned up to lick at Remus’ nipples in turn, his other hand leaned back to tease the tail-base, in which he learnt is the sensitive spot of all animals. Remus growled and turned over with Draco on top.

            “Do you think you can take it without preparation?” Remus asked, rubbing his fingers in between Draco’s cheeks and over his opening.

            “I can take anything you give me, love, as long as it is with you,” Draco leaned down to kiss Remus fully on the lips.

            Remus kissed him slowly. In between kisses he reached for the baby oil on the table and used it as lube before pulling him down gently on his hard, waiting cock. Draco literally screamed in Remus’ mouth as he felt himself being filled up. God, how he loved Remus’ cock when he does this. It would drive him insane anytime.

            “Shh, shh. Drake, are you OK?” Remus asked, stopping as he worried that he had hurt his beloved by not preparing him.

            “I’m…I’m OK…Your cock…just feels so good…” Draco panted as he clenched and unclenched his ass, sexual drive taking over. “God, I miss it so much…!”

            “Gently, Drake. God, you’re going to make me come already,” Remus panted as well, pulling him down to fully seat himself in Draco. “Now you can move, baby.”

            “Mmh, yes…I’m gonna ride you, my beloved wolf.”

            With his hands on Remus’ chest to anchor himself, he started bobbing up and down in a slow and steady rhythm, enjoying every inch of Remus’ cock in him. Oh, how he missed the wonderful man meat going in and out of his ass. It had been too long, and judging by the grunts and moans from Remus, he knew that he, too, shared the same sentiments.

            “God, Drake. So fucking good.”

            “Mmh, yes, I’m taking in all of you,” Draco bobbed up and down, trying to aim for the spot that would make him go crazy.

            “Yes, you are…mmh…! God, you feel so amazing…!” Remus groaned, lifting up to fuck him too.

            Draco widened his eyes and let out a strangled scream as Remus’ thrusts upward hit the spot just right, making him see white hot flashes in his mind’s eyes.

            “You’re not doing your duty, love. I need to feel you coming down on me hard.”

            “But it’s so good, Remy…” Draco whimpered as he started bobbing up and down harder, bringing his ass down hard to let the cock assault him as he let out moans and groans of pleasure.

            “Harder, baby, move that ass,” Remus said, panting. “God, you are so good.”

            Remus pulled him down for a kiss, pinching his nipples. Draco whined in the kiss from the pinch, moving faster, the jolts from the spot being hit tightening the pit of his stomach every time.

            “Tell me when you get tired and I roll us over again.”

            “OK…” Draco kept bobbing up and down, the tightening getting worse. “R…Remy…Mate…I’m…I think I’m gonna…”

            Remus pulled him up off of him, rolling them over and going down to suck his cock hard. Draco screamed and clawed at the bed, the suction of Remus’ mouth was driving him crazy as he begged Remus to stop, but Remus would not stop. He wanted to taste Draco too much. Draco soon lost it and released his load into Remus’ mouth, his back arched up from the orgasm. Remus kept his hips down on the bed while he drank him down, gulp after gulp, before leaning up over him.

            “I…I wanted us to come together…” Draco covered his face in embarrassment. “I’m so sorry, I’ve got no self-control…”

            “Oh, silly Drake,” Remus said as he pulled his hands away. “I want you to come as many times as you can. I know you wanted to as well.”

            Before Draco could protest, he stroked his cheek then leaned down to kiss him, letting him taste himself. Draco tasted himself and kissed him back hungrily, not realizing that it somehow awakened his cock just a little bit, in which Remus reached down to rub him.

            “See, baby?” Remus asked, smiling mischievously.

            “N…No way…” Draco blushed bright red in disbelief despite himself.

            “Now, do you want me to fuck you? Or I could go off and finish myself.”

            Draco immediately grabbed him by the wrists and whispered, “Fuck me…Fuck me till I lose my mind…”

            “Your wish…” Remus thrust into him. “…is my command."

            With that he started moving at a steady but fast pace. Draco moaned at the feeling of Remus’ cock reentering him, gripping hard at his shoulders as the cock went in and out of him.

            “So tight. You’re still in spasms, gripping me and then loosing,” Remus said as he started fucking him faster, making the boy let out moan after moan as his cock pummeled him.

            “Al…Almost there…! D…Deeper…! Deeper…!!!”

            Remus put both Draco’s legs up over his shoulder and dug in fast and hard to hit that spot.

            “Aah! Yes! God, yes, right there!!” Draco screamed, his back arched and his ass clenched every time he hit the spot, his hands gripping tight at the sheets.

            Remus leaned down as he groaned in pleasure, kissing him lustfully. He pulled him up, having the boy sit on him as Remus moved him up and done.

            “Fuck, fuck, fuck! Oh, Drake…!!” Remus couldn’t control his groans.

            “Yes, yes, YES!! Fuck me! Make me yours all over again~!!” Draco screamed again, bobbed along with the thrusts.

            Finally, Remus got to make a mark on Draco’s neck, hard enough to leave a mark but not to break the skin. He did that as he pulled him down all the way on his cock. The bite on his skin made Draco lose it once more, coming all over both of them, his body twitching in spasms as his arms wrapped tightly around Remus’ neck, although the amount was not as much as before. Remus couldn’t hold back this time. He crossed his eyes and buried his head as he came, shuddering and twitching as his come filled Draco up. Draco felt himself being filled to the brim, overflowing out of his ass, the warm seed within him sending pleasurable bliss all over his body as he let out a contented sigh. Remus rolled on to his side, keeping Draco next to him and keeping inside him.

            “Feel good, Drake?” Remus asked, kissing his neck where the mark was.

            “Mmh…Yes…So good…” Draco peppered him with kisses. “I love you even more now.”

            “I am glad,” Remus snuggled down, kissing him on his lips. “So you good for another go?”

            “Maybe, if—” Like before, Draco’s words were cut short by the babies’ cries for milk, making Remus groan.

            “Why do they always do that?”

            “Oh, hush, you silly wolf. They can’t help it if they’re hungry. I won’t be long, OK?” Draco pulled off from him and went to attend the babies. “Alright, alright, Mother’s here.”

            “Damn,” Remus lay back for a while before he got up and put a robe on to go watch him. “You look beautiful when you feed them.”

            “I guess that’s what they call the mother image,” Draco looked up and smiled at him, being half naked with a towel wrapped around his lower half of the body. “They always say mothers breastfeeding their children is the most beautiful sight.”

            “I also think it is a turn on. I could just suck you right now.”

            “Horny toad. Not in front of the cubs,” Draco pouted as he threw a random plushie at Remus’ chest, in which the latter caught it and came over to kiss his neck.

            “I love you, baby. And your ass,” Remus whispered in his ear. “I will get us something to eat. You need your energy.”

            Draco rolled his eyes and shook his head as he carried on feeding Abigail first, then after burping her, moved on to Amarinth. Remus left the room and went downstairs to fix something for them. Draco, after done feeding Amarinth and burping her, put them back into the crib and hummed them to sleep. Remus soon came back up with some delicious strawberry and cream and sat at the bedroom table to eat them. As soon as the kids were asleep, Draco went over to join him.

            “Mmm, this brings back memories,” Draco reached over for a strawberry and lathered it generously with cream before suckling at it and nibbling at it slowly.

            “Yes, it does,” Remus licked his lips. “Get on the table.”

            “What?” Draco pouted as he took another strawberry with cream and ate it. “But I’m hungry.”

            “So am I,” Remus came over, putting him up on the table. “Spread your legs so I can see.”

            Draco did as he was told, spreading his legs for Remus to see all. Remus settled between his legs and picked up a strawberry and fed it to Draco while kissing his shoulder, in which the latter ate it while sighing as he felt Remus’ lips on his shoulder.

            “Mmm…” Remus took another one and fed it to Draco. “I just can’t help myself around you, Draco. You are my Achilles’ heels.”

            “I just hope that I wouldn’t get in the way of you making important decisions,” Draco said as he ate the strawberry. “I’d hate myself if I caused you to make bad ones.”

            “You and the babies are the only important things in my life,” Remus said as he kissed him, tasting the strawberry on his lips.

            “As are mine,” Draco replied between kisses, running his fingers through Remus’ chocolate brown hair.

            Slowly, Remus ran his hand down Draco’s sides, kissing for all his was worth. He pulled Draco closer, pushing a finger in Draco’s opening to see if he was still slick. Finding he was, Remus pushed back into Draco’s tight hole, never breaking the kiss. Draco let out a moan in Remus’ mouth as he felt himself being filled, his fingers curled and gripped at his hair. _God, that felt so good to have him back inside again,_ the young blonde thought as Remus pushed him down on the table, following him and moving in a slow pace. He only stopped kissing to get a breath then back to kissing, making this a slow love making, not a lust-filled fuck fest. Draco was liking the way the pace is going as he kept kissing him, only breaking for breath, as the cock piston in and out in that wondrous slow and steady feeling. He instinctively wrapped his legs around the half-wolf’s waist, bringing him a little deeper.

            “You are so beautiful." Remus licked his lips and stroked his cheeks. “I love you so much, Draco.”

            “And I love you too, Remy, so much,” Draco cupped both Remus’ cheeks. “Thank you for rescuing me from a possible life of misery, and giving me two beautiful children.”

            “You’re making me blush, seriously,” Remus chuckled. “Once the cubs are old enough, we will embark on that journey you promised to free me, and then we will be officially married.”

            “I definitely look forward to that,” Draco smiled, his ass clenching reflexively at Remus’ cock which was still in him, making the half-wolf groan.

            “Yes. Thinking about you signing that document to free me and of us standing in that altar speaking our vows makes me glad that I am with you.”

            With that, Remus went back to kissing and fucking Draco, and Draco immediately returned to becoming a pool of lust and desire, letting himself being kissed and fucked, jolts of pleasure shooting up and down his spine. Luckily the crib was charmed beforehand to filter out any sounds that might disrupt the babies’ sleep—meaning they can be heard but they cannot hear—or they would not be here fucking with abandon. Remus pulled him up and sat down on a chair.

            “Help me, Drake,” Remus said, putting his hands on Draco’s hips to move him up and down.

            Draco obeyed by putting his hands on Remus’ shoulders to anchor himself before bobbing up and down, working that ass to ride the cock.

            “God, yes, Draco…Harder…” Remus reached down to push a finger in beside his cock.

            Draco let out a whine as his ass was stretched to the limit, continuing to ride the cock, bobbing up and down and letting it hit his prostate hard until he lost all sense of decency. This was a first for him; Remus had never done this before and he felt as if he had been stretched more than he should, but the primal side of him felt rather turned on by it.

            “So good, Draco. I want you to come from my cock alone,” Remus could feel the end near, but he tried to hold it back, pushing another finger in.

            “Aah… N…No more…Too much…” Draco whimpered, trying to mean that the pleasure of being stretched to the limit was too much for him to bear as his prostate was hit again and again, his end almost nearing as well as his pit of stomach was tied into impossible knots.

            “Do you like being stretched more?” Remus kissed his cheeks.

            “Y…Yes…N…No…I…I mean…I dunno…this is…is too much…I’m…I’m gonna lose it…!!”

            Before he knew it, his mind went into a blank state as he came all over both of them, his nails digging into Remus’ shoulders before his vision finally cleared. Remus pulled the two fingers out and pulled Draco down hard on him, triggering his own orgasm and came inside Draco. He panted for a moment before putting Draco up on the table.

            “I am not done with you yet,” Remus said as he knelt down and start licking and suck his come out of Draco’s hole.

            Draco let out moan after moan and his body twitched as Remus sucked and licked out of his hole, the back of his mind telling him that this probably was another one of the business’ skill he had yet shown him. His body then instinctively expelled out the come from the suction, his body spasm as another orgasm hit him. Remus licked and suck, eating him out until Draco’s last orgasm subsided. He stood up and hugged Draco to him.

            “There, there. You were amazing.”

            Draco didn’t reply, panting as his body still twitched a little bit as he leaned against Remus, his body totally drained.

            “Come, let’s go lay down. That was some trip I gave you, huh?”

            He picked him up and took him to the bed and laid Draco down, covering him up before got on the bed and held Draco close, slowly drifting off to sleep along with him.

            “I love you, Drake. Forever and a day.”


	86. Chapter 86

            As the public court hearing drew close, everyone was on their toes on the situation. More and more sensational news were published and broadcasted throughout the wizarding world and everyone was debating about them. It was as if the Ministry scandal was the new pick-up line for “How’s the weather?” for everyone nowadays. As before, sides were taken and there have been more than once where their debate led to tongue-lashing and fist-fights even within the families and the entire wizarding world’s atmosphere was rather tense.

            The Order was, of course, the main target of all this hype. In fact, ever since they have made their secret group public, they have been subjected to various mishaps and mysterious occurrence. Albus suffered the worst of the blows because he, Lil and Beck (who were bunking in at his place for the moment until the public court hearing) were the ones with the crucial evidence to take down the Ministry. More than once, they found themselves being ransacked as things were thrown around, cabinets were opened and messed about, files strewn around, and heck, even clothes were torn apart as the Ministry have probably sent secret parties to help them find the crucial evidence in vain. Only Albus was the one who knew where he kept them and he did not even tell Lil or Beck for fear of them being targeted to reveal the whereabouts, and knowing the Ministry, the last thing they wanted was bad publicity and suspicion of sending people to interrogate an old man. But just for precaution, Minerva had advised that they should be shadowed by Hagrid to get extra security, since Hagrid, due to his tremendous—and perhaps terrifying—size, is least likely to be harmed by the Ministry’s advances.

            Sirius, now that he was no longer out of the Ministry’s radar, has been constantly receiving harassing visits from them to make him confess and tell where he had hidden Draco and his family. He was forced to remove all his portraits for fear of them ratting him out and also send away his hired help back to their homes until the thing blows over so that they would not accidentally make a slip up if the Ministry pushed any further. The only person who refused to leave was Paprika, and probably something good came out of all this harassment because somehow it had forced Sirius to confront his true feelings for this little Spanish slave girl and finally confessed it during another one of their heavy bedding.

            Fleur and the Delacour family were also harassed occasionally by the Ministry for betraying the Ministry’s trust and going against them secretly when they should be working for them to be on the lookout for Voldemort’s whereabouts, but was hailed by their fellow Frenchmen for their bravery of going against them, although the minority who took the Ministry’s side gave them quite a bit of trouble along with those who thought ill of them working for the Ministry in the first place, allowing the Ministry to relocate Harry’s French relative and have them killed. Both her and Bill who worked in Gringotts Bank lost their jobs because Gringotts couldn’t afford to lose customers due to their presence and their involvement in the Order and were forced to be laid off, but at least they have discovered love for each other and planned to be wed once this whole thing blew over.

            Aberforth was equally worse off from the hype as he was losing income from the lack of customers coming into Hog’s Head. Costs were too highly spent on damages when fights break out in the bar debating about the Ministry scandal that he could no longer hold his job as bartender. He had to temporarily quit his job and he was definitely making his estranged brother Albus remember that it was his fault this happened. Mundungus was branded a snitch and a sneaky spy by his fellow outlaws and beat him into a pulp, and was barely alive when Aberforth found him at the side of the road. Of course, Albus was more than willing to take him in as the hired help and the prideful Dung accepted it, claiming that he was just accepting this temporarily just until he could get back on his feet to establish his ground hold as an outlaw again.

            The rest of the Weasley family was also affected by the hype as they were immediately branded as blood-traitors by those who took the Ministry’s side. It was a no-brainer that Arthur lost his job in the Ministry, but he did not mind. His wife Molly was worried that if he had continued his employment there, he would be harmed even further anyway. The Weasley twins’ business was affected as well from the hype, and it gotten to the point where they had to close shop because the Ministry supporters were vandalizing it in more ways than one, even scrawling death threats on their walls and windows. Ron was getting mixed looks from everyone, both the Ministry’s supporters and non-supporters, but Hermione was with him every step of the way. The Grangers did offer them to take refuge for the moment at their place, but they did not want to be a hassle, and they had to be there just in case something went wrong with the upcoming public court hearing.

            The only Weasley family member that was gaining from this hype would probably be Charlie because not only dragon trainers live a secluded life, meaning news did not travel fast to them as regular wizarding citizens do, thus the lack of being harassed, but also because the Ministry scandal spoke levels to the Japanese magical creatures who took refuge and worked there, especially Hiroshi the demon fox, and was heralded by them for fighting against the corrupt Ministry. Arabella Figg was perhaps the least of all that was affected by the Ministry since she was a Squib and spent most of her time with her cats in the Muggle world, but she did occasionally get some owl infestation of sorts because of threatening letters sent to her by both the Ministry supporters and those who hated her for working for the Ministry on the Voldemort lookout, and also the mixed looks she got whenever she paid a visit to the wizarding world to get her supplies.

            The DA members were not exempted from the effects of the hype as well. Coupled with the fact that they were under constant scrutiny and occasionally interrogated by the Ministry on information about the Ministry scandal and about the crucial evidence (which, of course, they honestly have no idea of because it was under the possession of Albus and the old man hadn’t told anyone about its whereabouts), the school itself was giving them a hard time trying to cope before the public court hearing. They were mostly getting it from the Slytherins because most of them had families working under the Ministry or were pureblood elitist, but no matter how they tried to prove it, it either backfired on them or was just plain useless.

            Hannah Abbott almost got herself expelled because someone accused her of potion abuse or ingesting something illegal to allow her to pass her exams, though it was partially true that she secretly took some Calming Draught that was snuck to her by Harry. Katie Bell almost got herself killed when someone slipped some sleeping potion into her drink that took effect when she was going down the stairs, and she would’ve been paralyzed, or worse, have her neck broken, if someone had not quickly cast a Levitation spell to break the fall. She broke a few ribs and maybe her wrist, but at least she was safe and sound…and alive.

            Terry Boot sustained bruises and lesions from books that mysteriously fell off the shelves once or twice, and was once thrown into the lake by some unseen force and had to be rescued by the professors before the mermaids drag him under. Lavender Brown had an argument with someone who was insulting Ron of being a blood-traitor and their fight got so out of hand that her hair was caught on fire with the Inferno Curse. Needless to say, she had to get a haircut that probably rivaled any tomboy haircut you have ever seen because of the damage it did to her. Surprisingly, just like Fleur and Bill, they somehow discovered love for each other and how many common things they shared while they were comparing their injuries and their requited love over Hermione and Ron respectively that fateful day in the Hospital Wing, and much to the relief of the Old Married Couple, they were no longer bothered by their pursuits again.

            Cho Chang and Cedric Diggory were not spared by the harassments either. Someone had somehow managed to kidnap Cho and dragged her into the maze that was used during the Triwizard Tournament and hid her wand somewhere within the school so that she would not signal anyone to rescue her. Then they sent a threatening note to Cedric to make him go into the maze, but had somehow managed to charm the maze so that it would behave worse than it was when he was taking the Triwizard Tournament. It took the DA members and Hagrid, with his tracking skills, almost 3 days before they finally found either of them, tired and dehydrated—mostly Cho, due to the shock—and another 3 days to help locate Cho’s wand with the help of the school ghosts.

            The couples Michael Corner and Ginny Weasley were also nowhere safe from their wrath, especially Ginny as she was branded a blood-traitor along with her family. Ginny would have threatening letters and hate mail stuffed in her bags or in her wardrobe, and even had her pet cat flayed to death and dumped onto her bed, while Michael would end up seeing ‘BLOOD-TRAITOR LOVER’ scrawled on the walls of his dormitory and his books torn to shreds with those words written in bold and with charcoal all over it until he was forced to buy new books before the cycle repeated itself again. If it weren’t for Ginny’s famous move of the Bat-Bogey Hex, they would’ve given her more trouble.

            Justin Finch-Fletchley, being that he’s Muggle-born, was constantly given dirty looks by them, and more than once, he would find himself at the butt end of a bad joke or pranks that were cast on him, adding him being a Mudblood as insult to injury. Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas were also equally harassed, one of them almost being raped if it weren’t for Argus Filch, who thought they were making out due to his failing eyesight, coming in and interrupting them. They both had begged each other to go home where they would be safe, but neither would back down, mainly because they didn’t want to worry their families any more than they already did, especially their Muggle side of the family, and that they would not allow either of them to face the harassments alone.

            Anthony Goldstein also almost suffered the same fate of being expelled for cheating in exams, which of course was not true since Harry had no part in his exams and that he only helped him with his studies, as were the same case for Ernie Macmillan. Angelina Johnson and Alicia Spinnet seemed to have suffered their harassments via Quidditch, sustaining more injuries than even a pro-Quidditch player would get and yet those responsible of hurting them not being penalized or anything. Luna Lovegood had had her share of being bullied even before the hype, but after the hype, the bullying seemed to have gotten worse, to the point where it actually forced the normally nonchalant Luna into actual tears when they took her mother’s wand she had kept as memento and flushed it down the toilet. Thankfully Moaning Myrtle was there to help her retrieve it for her or she would’ve cried her eyes out for the first time in years.

            The twins Padma and Parvati Patil also had their share of being harassed, the worst being that the handmade gifts that were given by Harry being destroyed. They were almost tempted to leave school but Hermione managed to persuade them to hang on and be strong for Harry’s sake. Zacharias Smith almost got himself expelled as well when the bullying drove him to a huge fist-fight that escalated to the point where he threatened to push the person off the Astrology Tower, and would’ve almost done it if it weren’t for Ron badgering him to let the person go or whatever Harry had done to make him a better person would’ve been in vain. Of course, that didn’t stop him from almost blowing the person’s teeth off and he was given 3-month’s detention.

            Susan Bones and Marietta Edgecombe was probably the most worst off of all the DA members that have been harassed with, along with Lee Jordan. Because Susan’s aunt and Marietta’s mother was in the Ministry, they were branded traitors of the family. They were dragged out of their dormitory in the middle of the night by their heels and were tied onto the branches of the Whomping Willows before being left there to suffer its wrath. Hagrid found them the next day, still in their binds but on the grass below probably because of the force of being tossed that broke the ropes they were hanging from, totally bruised and battered and probably fractured in different places but at least still alive. No one could be named or convicted because they were attacked in the dark and without warning and they could not make out their faces, but it was a no-brainer that it had to be someone from the Slytherins, though no one fessed up about it.

            Lee Jordan, now that the Ministry scandal went public, did not require using any secret channels or secret headphones to hear his broadcast and went a little too trigger-happy on the broadcasting until he got careless in being tracked. He was lucky to be able to get away before the Ministry managed to locate and arrest him, but he was found later on with devices that led to him owning a pirate radio channel and was immediately ratted out by a Slytherin, so while they cannot convict him with being the person who made the broadcasting without evidence (since he had used a voice-altering potion), he was convicted with owning and manhandling pirate radio machinery, making him an accomplice and was forced to be expelled from school.

            So far, the only people safe from harm more or less was the prophesied people themselves. Tonks, Moody and Kingsley may have lost their positions as Aurors in the Ministry because of the scandal and their involvement of boycott along with the Order, but that did not deter them from doing the best they can to prevent the Ministry from getting their hands on them. Draco and his family were still in the clear as so far no one suspected Tonks keeping them in her house, and Harry and Severus were still good as the St. Mungo staff continued to delay his release, adding his potion-poisoning to the list of excuses to keep him detained, though the Aurors were starting to get a little restless and suspicious but unable to act without the Ministry’s orders.

            The situation was troubling, but everyone knew they had to hold on.

            For the sake of the wizarding world’s future.

\--:--

            Everyone was gathered in the Wizengamot court as the public court hearing drew near within the hour. Those who were not authorized to be in the court, especially the general public, were urged to wait outside and listen to the hearing via megaphones that were installed outside the court. A few selected people from the press, including Rita Skeeter, were allowed into the court while the rest had to stay outside along with the others and listen to the hearing just like everyone else.

            Just like during the trial of Severus against his crimes over impregnating Harry and every other trial, the atmosphere was tense and grim, with the haunting settings and the works. But this time, there were no plum-coloured robes worn on everyone because the ones being on trial were the Ministry members versus Albus and the Order, backed up by ministers of the branch ministries. The chair with the chains were not needed, and in its place were two pedestals, one for Cornelius who represented the Ministry and one for Albus who represented the Order and the people. Percy was still in charge of taking notes of the trial, and to avoid any bias, someone from the branch ministries was the one to read out the customary preliminary notes and announced the interrogators in charge of the case, which were the handful of people of the Ministry that were not corrupted by the Ministry’s system.

            “Now we shall read the charges,” the announcer concluded the preliminary notes and moved on to another parchment. “The charges are as follows: Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Minister of the Ministry of Magic, versus Cornelius Fudge, Head Minister of the Ministry of Magic, on the charges of conspiracy, which includes mass genocide via hired assassination, harassment and attempted murder of the child of Harry James Potter and Severus Snape and the child of Draco Malfoy and Remus John Lupin, and massive cover-up prior to a prophecy of grave importance. What do the parties plea?”

            “I plead them guilty of all charges,” Albus said, earning a few murmurs of mixed emotions from everyone.

            “And I plead not guilty of all charges,” Cornelius retaliated, backed up by agreements by people of the Ministry.

            For the next one hour and a half, both parties went into hot debate, measuring and counter-measuring the evidences displayed before the court, and of course, earning loud protests and denials from the Ministry’s side. There were a few times where they had to be kept in line or there would’ve been fist-fights and wand-waving followed. It got to the point where there were indeed wand-waving and they had to be confiscated before they ended up hurting anyone in the courtroom.

            “This is outrageous!” Cornelius shouted. “This is a big stupid carnival act! He has no proof that we have hired this monster Voldemort to commit such atrocious acts and all the evidence he had shown so far are circumstantial. Who knows whether or not those are either fabricated or tampered evidence just so he could take over my spot!”

            “You know as well as I do that my age will no longer permit me to have any validity of seat on your spot,” Albus replied. “You are just as paranoid as you are the day you were given your position. And I will not go as low as fabricate or tamper evidence, unlike you who will stop at nothing, even kill my future great-grandchild just to ensure you can maintain your elitist ideology.”

            “This is clearly contempt of the court! He should be removed from this courtroom and waive this as a mistrial.”

            “Pipe down, both of you,” one of the interrogators warned them before turning to Albus. “Mr. Dumbledore, is there any other conclusive evidence you would like to present?”

            “Yes,” Albus said. “This is the most crucial of evidence that I…”

            Before he could finish what he said, a sudden loud crash sounded at the entrance as the doors were blasted open into smithereens. The crowd who were waiting outside listening to the hearing had either been killed, severely wounded or fled the scene, screaming in horror as they went. Everyone started to cower as well when the assailant looked up, his snake-like eyes and billowing white hair illuminating his evil presence.

            “Hello, Ministry. Your prodigal son has returned.”


	87. Chapter 87

            No sooner did everyone manage to even get their head around what was going on, than the tall, menacing figure of the mass murderer Voldemort come into view, followed behind by the ratty-looking Wormtail and his little small army of Death Eaters, Lucius excluded since he was already arrested and placed in Azkaban. His serpentine eyes scanned through the room and growled deeply in his throat at the sight of everyone present, but mostly towards the members of the Ministry. Some tried to make a run for it to other exits within the room but they were blocked by the Death Eaters when they apparated to the exit doors, brandishing their wand at them before they could.

            Voldemort towered over the Ministry members with an air of pure contempt and anger. Cornelius wanted to brandish out his wand and deliver the first blow but was disarmed immediately with Voldemort’s wandless magic.

            “Well, then my fellow ministers and guests, I am glad that you are all present,” Voldemort’s hissing menacing voice sent shivers to anyone who heard it. “I’d hate it if no one is here to tell me that somehow I have been _used_!”

            The Death Eaters muttered disapprovingly at the Ministry while everyone present in the room looked like they were about to piss their pants off. No one, even the all-knowing, all-seeing Albus Dumbledore had expected that Voldemort would actually show up in person, and within the grounds of the Ministry no less.

            “Oh Merlin, it’s him! It’s the monster!” someone tried to suppress his frightful voice. “He’s actually here!”

            “Damn right!” another one replied in trepidation. “Most of us here are non-purebloods. We’re all gonna die~!”

            “What are we gonna do?” another asked in panic. “If we don’t go out there now, that creep is going to turn all of us into barbecue sauce!”

            “You got any better ideas?” another hissed before a sudden bang and a flare shot past him, barely nicking his ear, to be met with Voldemort’s venomous glare.

            “Would you mind not talking as if I’m not here? So rude. Now, to the matter at hand…” Voldemort waved a wand to levitate everyone else’s wands and brought them to him. “I heard from my trusted spy here that apparently I have actually been in service to the Ministry since the day I was born. Apparently I have been groomed to be an assassin for the Ministry since birth until their plans got a little haywire. Would someone explain it to me properly?”

            The Ministry members started exchanging glances, looking a little hesitant, as if they were debating amongst themselves whether or not to confirm the truth. Should they say it out loud for him? Or give hints that it was true, or in their case, not true? Or should they just outright deny altogether? They looked like they were worried that if they let the cat out of the bag, everyone present in this room would find out and they would end up losing the case, if there were any case to be had since they’re more or less Voldemort’s hostages. They didn’t know what to do, so they just held their tongue.

            “Why are you hesitant?” Voldemort’s voice hit them icily on their ears and through their thumping hearts. “Are you afraid that you will hurt my little feelings? Well, guess what? I _am_ a little hurt right about now!!”

            So saying, he swished his wand towards a nearby pedestal and blew it into a million pieces, making everyone gasp in horror. Voldemort chuckled deep in his throat.

            “Now, will someone please shed some light in the dark here,” Voldemort grabbed a random Ministry member and aimed his wand at her head, “or do I have to kill someone to get the answers?”

            “Please, do not be rash,” Albus tried to take control of the situation. “We have all the paperwork right here. If you would just read them…”

            “I don’t care about paperwork, old man!!” Voldemort hissed. “I want to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth!! Am I or am I not being used by the Ministry for their little games?!”

            No one from the Ministry dared to respond. Voldemort growled and blasted the head of the woman he had with an Exploding Curse before grabbing the next one.

            “Come on. I don’t have much patience here.”

            Still no reply, even though there were a few of them who were starting to cry and sob at the horrifying scene they had just witnessed.

            “And they call me a monster,” Voldemort growled and did the same with the person in his hand before reaching towards Dolores Umbridge.

            “No! No! Stop!” the fat lady squealed as Voldemort held fast onto her, wincing as she felt the wand on her temple. “Do you know who I am? You can’t do this to me! I am the Under Secretary of…”

            “I don’t give a damn if you’re Merlin’s old wife. I want some answers!”

            “Alright! Alright, you win! It’s true!”

            “Dolores!” Cornelius frowned disapprovingly but was shot with Voldemort’s glare.

            “Shut up, you old bag of bones!” Dolores squeaked at Cornelius. “I’m not about to die for you like the rest of this sorry buggers! I’m telling! Yes, yes, it’s true! You were groomed to be our assassin from the very beginning!”

            “Really now?” Voldemort grinned with satisfaction, then using his wand, made a mass Levitation spell to make all the Ministry members sit right in the middle of the room, then with a wave of wandless magic, forced the rest of the crowd to one side before making his way to the pedestal that was occupied by Albus, smashed it to smithereens with his wand and circled around the petrified Ministry members. “Well then, don’t stop. Do continue. And I want to hear the truth! No fabrications, no nothing! I don’t want you to tell me just to humour me or whatever; I want the cold, hard truth!”

            “I…It’s because of a prophecy,” Dolores continued, “m…made during the time when Faris ‘Spout-Hole’ Spavin was in office, about…about that boy Harry James Potter and that Draco Malfoy who will be the mother of the children who will unite Muggles and the wizarding world into one nation. Th…The person who made the prophecy was a very powerful Seer with accuracies of 100%, a very rare breed that happens only once every century. She did not s-s-say when will it happen, and we didn’t know which specific family target or timeline we should watch out for.”

            “Dolores!” Cornelius said between clenched teeth.

            “Oh, will you can it, old man?!” John Dawlish ribbed him. “We are in the middle of a life and death situation, there’s no time for pride! We gotta tell him what we know!”

            “B-B-But…” Cornelius was trying to gesture the rest of the crowd that was listening right now but the Ministry members were too fearful for their lives to care about that any longer.

            “The prophecy is only known to the highest authority of the Ministry of Magic. Everyone else in the building does not know,” John continued. “And it had been passed down from one generation of highest authority to another, mostly to the acting Head Ministers of the office first, since that day. First it was Faris, then it was Nobby Leach, then Milicent Bagnold and finally down to Cornelius.”

            “W-W-We couldn’t a-a-allow th-th-that,” Cornelius finally gave in. “Not after what the Muggles did to our people during the witch hunt, the worst being the one in Salem. And w-w-we can’t forget the times where those Muggles often misused our powers for their benefits while we’re left for naught. Why did you think we live in this world of seclusion from the Muggles in the first place?”

            “Believe me, young man, you weren’t the first of many assassins we tried to recruit to stop that prophecy,” Barty Crouch Sr. spouted. “You’re not that special.”

            “Oh, really now?” Voldemort loomed over him. “How exactly did you fare without me, hmm?”

            “We had secret hired arms to deal with the non-purebloods based on the identity of Potter being either a blood-traitor or a non-pureblood,” Ludo Bagman said timidly. “And we tried to establish a strong connection with the Malfoy family to ensure that they are on our side and that we are both on each other’s take so that they could have a well-established pureblood lineage and not end up affiliated to any non-purebloods or cursed creatures of any kind. I mean who would want someone to bring the nation together be descended by a werewolf? Does that not disgust you?”

            “Yes, and thank goodness your lackey Wormtail helped us with aborting the abomination growing in that Potter child, ugh!” Dolores let out a shiver of disgust. “He’d be the last person I’d approve to nurture someone who brings the nation together and spell our downfall.”

            Voldemort turned to Wormtail who started cowering away from him.

            “I…I can explain, Master…” Wormtail trembled in his words.

            “You found the boy…” Voldemort treaded towards him, his body emitting a very angry, venomous aura. “…and you never brought him back?!”

            “I didn’t mean to…I mean, I didn’t…”

            “Traitor! Now you will die!”

            Wormtail let out a frightful squeak and made a run for it, turning into his Rat Animagus to try and scurry away, but Bellatrix had beat him to the punch. He had not counted on this deranged woman having no sense of fear for rats like most women do as he fell into her mercy, his tail yanked up by her and was squirming and dangling upside down in her hand as she handed the rat to Voldemort. Voldemort used his wand to hit a pressure point and forced Wormtail to revert to his human self, cowering beneath his feet.

            “Master…Master, please forgive me~! I didn’t mean to…I…I just don’t want you to hurt the boy anymore…!”

            “You dare defy me!” Voldemort snarled. “Your orders were to bring the boy back to me if you find him! You swore your allegiance to me! You swore to serve me! Don’t you forget that it was me who took you in when no one else would, _Wormtail_!”

            “M…My n…name is…P…Peter Pettigrew…” Wormtail stuttered, looking up at him with whatever last defiance and pride he had as a human being. “And Harry…is…is my friend…!”

            “Then you are nothing more than garbage.”

            So saying, Voldemort waved his wand and shouted out a spell that materialized black tendrils of aura from underground. It picked Wormtail up and pinned him against the wall and, with another wave of the wand, sent the tendrils crawling slowly and painfully into his skin through his veins, piercing them out in tiny rose thorn-like spikes and tearing through his clothes. The whole courtroom could hear his agonized screams, but were frozen in horror to do anything. Blood began to trickle and drip all over the floor as the tendrils crawled closer and closer towards his face, wrapping itself within the veins and the inner walls of the skin of the rest of their bodies. Voldemort chuckled long and low as he watched Wormtail being tortured beyond mercy. After what seemed like forever, Wormtail was soon in shreds all over the place as the tendrils exploded within him, bursting every single vein it had crawled into, his brains, body parts, entrails, bones and almost anything that made a person’s body sprawled all over the floor in a bloody pool of mess. Some screamed when the blood got onto them, but most of them were just too horrified to even react.

            “Sorry for the momentary interruption,” Voldemort said casually as he wiped the blood that got onto him and licked it clean. “Now where were we?”

            “W-W-Well, the hired arms we secretly called in were not getting anywhere,” Barty Crouch Sr. continued. “They’ve got every non-pureblood they could think of but not one that lead us to the Potters. We have also spoilt the Malfoys rotten but still they associated themselves with the dark and its creatures, so we had to think of someone concrete, someone that would really be under our wing yet has no ties with us.”

            “And we found you, through your mother,” Pius Thicknesse cut in. “Your mother and her family were descended from a long line of wizard mercenaries. Your mother was a Gaunt, and the Gaunts have been in service under many kings and queens for many generations and their ancestors were students to many of Merlin’s own apprentices he had trained to be wizards and witches. And your father Tom Riddle Sr., as much as a Muggle he may be, is possibly the richest, most powerful and most influential man that had ever run his part of town, so we had faith in him to raise you properly until we take you under your wing…”

            “Well, we _all_ know how it turned out, didn’t we?!” Voldemort roared. “You sent me to a man who think of me as a freak and abused me like a fucking rag doll! Every day! Every day and every hour and every minute and every second of my fucking life, I was bludgeoned into believing that I am nothing but a freak of nature, a being born from Hell and a creature that shouldn’t even exist! That my mother was a whore and succubus that robbed him of a chance to marry a proper woman because of me! How’s that for a good plan, huh?!”

            “W-W-Well, look at the b-b-bright s-s-side…” Cornelius stammered. “Y-Y-You turn out alright, right? S-S-Sure, y-y-you ended up killing your father and your adopted father, but at least y-y-you served your purpose. You have to admit that our ideology was r-r-right, right? I-I-I mean, those degenerate non-purebloods had it coming, a-a-and the Muggles do not deserve to be graced w-w-with our existence…a-a-and don’t forget that it was th-th-thanks to us, you continued to elude the law…”

            “I never asked for it!!” Voldemort jabbed his wand at Cornelius’ gut. “I _never_ asked for it! NEVER!! I don’t serve anybody any more than I serve manipulative scumbags like you!! I am who I am: Tom Marvolo Riddle a.k.a. Voldemort, mass murderer extraordinaire, and I’m damn proud of it! I did what I did because I _wanted_ to do it, because of the wretched non-purebloods and half-breeds that are nothing but a sick, twisted reminder of what I was! Not because you _ordered_ me to do it! I don’t even _care_ about whatever prophecy or whatever ideology it is that you sick bastards are upholding! It’s none of my fucking business!! I don’t fucking serve the Ministry or anyone else like a fucking dog!! You used me, assholes, you _used_ me!! Nobody uses Voldemort! NOBODY!!”

            It dawned to everyone in the courtroom that Voldemort was no longer into his sick twisted games of keeping everyone in their toes. He was mad, extremely mad, and he was out for blood. They all prayed in their terrified little hearts that someone—anyone—would come to their rescue as they were trapped and in his mercy, their wands beyond their reach.

            “Now I will show you what is it like to fuck with me!”

            Using his wand, he picked all the Ministry members one by one, letting them float in the midair as he cast the same spell that he had cast onto Wormtail. Once more, the people witnessed in horror as the black tendrils crawled through the veins of every single member of the Ministry of Magic, their agonized screams echoed throughout the whole room. Even with the commotion outside and the Death Eaters holding out onto the exits, barring anyone from coming in or going out, nothing was more deafening than the screams and wails of pain and agony as they begged for mercy, for someone to help save them from their torture.

            Albus tried to use the opportunity of Voldemort distracted with torturing the Ministry members to accio his wand with wandless magic, but unfortunately the monster wasn’t as distracted as the old man thought he would as he used wandless magic to stop Albus in his tracks before the latter could spell out an attack. Raising the old man to the same height as the Ministry members, Voldemort clenched his fists slowly and tightly, and Albus could suddenly feel his spine breaking one by one in a torturous pace. Voldemort then did another hand motion and turned his hand clockwise, then counter-clockwise, with Albus’ body contorting along with it, the old man letting out moans and groans of pain. Later, without warning, Voldemort unclenched his hands abruptly, causing the old man’s back to burst inside out, his spine actually shattered like a glass smashed onto the ground as fragments of it along with his blood flew out at all directions in crimson red. His blood—large amounts of it—splattered aimlessly, staining his whole body as he choked, more blood gurgled out of his every facial orifice before Voldemort laughed out menacingly and waved his hand, throwing him headlong into one of the seats of the courtroom.

            “Now,” Voldemort turned to the Ministry members whose voices were going hoarse from all the screaming. “Who should I eliminate first and put them out of their misery? You?” he turned to Ludo, “Or you?” he looked jeeringly at Dolores, “Or maybe you?” he turned to Cornelius, “Hmm…Nope, I’m not going to make it that easy for you. I’m saving you, the best, for last.”

            With one downward flick of his arm, everyone except Cornelius exploded, ending the same way as Wormtail did as he turned the entire courtroom into a bloodbath. More people were screaming in fear as they cowered against each other, praying for dear life that their lives be spared from this. The commotion got even louder outside beyond the courtroom but somehow, the Death Eaters managed to get hold of some very powerful wards to keep them out and everyone else in. Voldemort then circled slowly around Cornelius who was still hung in midair with the black tendrils literally filling up every vein in his body, his skin impaled with the spikes like a human cactus. After being satisfied with the view, Voldemort made the tendrils disappear, as if they had never been there, minus the thousands of tiny bleeding holes that leaked out of the Minister’s body. Leaving him there hanging, he grinned upward at him and licked the blood that trickled down the older man’s fingers.

            “How does it feel, Minister?” Voldemort hissed. “How does it feel to be at the mercy of your little protégé assassin, eh? How does it feel like to experience my handiwork that I have done to so many of the targets that you have so-called ‘sent’ me to do, eh? Riveting, isn’t it? How do you like me now? You proud of me yet, of your little protégé?”

            Before the poor guy could reply, a greenish aura blasted onto Voldemort, flinging him backwards. Voldemort’s concentration of his spell was broken and made Cornelius fall onto the floor abruptly like a sack of potatoes. Voldemort almost got the air knocked out of him when his body hit one of the pedestals and tried to surged back upright, only to freeze on the spot by a powerful and cold bluish aura, ice climbing up to his waist. He struggled to move, but in vain.

            “What the…That’s impossible!! Who did…?”

            There was a huge blinding flash and a loud blast, like someone who just let loose a pack of C4 or TNT as the exits blew open one by one. Sounds of tearing, slashing and cracking were throughout the whole courtroom as one by one, the Death Eaters were all mysteriously subdued, screaming bloody murder. Some people fell backwards by the impact but most of the blow was avoided, as if it was meant for the Death Eaters. Within moments, everyone was starting to run for the exits as a group of middle-age men and women followed behind by a strawberry-blonde made their entrance.

            “Take Dumbledore and Fudge to the infirmary,” one of the men gestured someone in the courtroom to tend to Albus and Cornelius as he made his way to the struggling Voldemort. “Well, well, Riddle. We meet at last.”

            “Who the hell are you?!” Voldemort demanded, trying to use his wandless magic to break free from the ice but it still would not budge.

            “Oh, you’ll know soon enough,” another man smiled mysteriously at him.

            The strawberry-blonde’s wand was the last thing Voldemort saw before he was knocked out cold.


	88. Chapter 88

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic was a very hard and long one for me to write, especially when it involves a long history and family tree lineage lesson. Took me forever to look through and study the history of Merlin and King Arthur and whatnot, though I also inserted a little bit of my own interpretation plus what I have watched from the movie ‘Merlin’ starring Sam Neil, so I hope you don’t mind.
> 
> P/S: I also used some of my OCs that were used in my other fanfic "The Ones for the Boy who Lived" for this to work

            Everyone was gathered in St. Mungo, particularly the ward where Albus was admitted in. Harry was right by beside the bed, holding onto his adopted grandfather’s hand with one hand and stroking the old man’s hair with the other, while Severus was beside the little boy, his arm around his shoulder to comfort him. The DA members were there as well (thankfully they were not present at the Ministry building, so none of them were hurt) so as to watch over their little friend and give him moral support.

            As soon as the mysterious group of men and women came in to save the day, Voldemort was immediately knocked out cold and taken into custody. No one knew where Voldemort was taken, but the mysterious group assured the public that he was in good hands for the moment. Cornelius managed to survive the torture Voldemort had thrown onto him, but not without leaving numerous scars on his physique. He was prepared to deny everything he had just said in the courtroom, claiming that it was just to satisfy the monster’s delusional thoughts, but luck was not on his side. Rita, forever loyal to her job as a journalist, managed to record everything that he and the Ministry members had said since the moment Voldemort started talking in the courtroom using her recording globe, and even tasked her quill to have everything in writing. That, along with his already ailing body, drove the poor Head Minister insane, rendering him into a permanent catatonic state and making him unfit to be a Head Minister any longer.

            Sadly, Albus, due to his old age, could not withstand and pull through from the injury inflicted on him by Voldemort. The medi-wizard diagnosed that he had not much time left in his hands, so it was advisable for anyone close to him to spend his last moments together with him, thus the group that gathered around his death bed.

            “Ah, my dear boy,” Albus said in a soft, tired voice. “I am so glad to see you alright, even if it means one last time.”

            “D…Don’t say that, Grandpa Albus…” Harry said, fighting back tears. “Y…You’ll be fine. Everything will be alright and we’ll be together, you’ll see.”

            “Harry, my dear boy, it is not wise to try and teach an old man how to suck eggs, if you get my drift. I know when my time is coming.”

            “B…But…But I am to be called to meet with the people who had rescued you and everyone else in the Ministry. At least hold on until I come to deliver whatever they’re going to tell us…”

            “I’m sorry, my boy, but I suppose…you’ll have to tell me when we meet…eventually.”

            Harry bit his lip, still trying to hold back his tears. He had already lost a child; he couldn’t bear to lose another loved one who was so parentally dear to him. Burying his face onto the old man’s chest, he finally could not bear it and let loose his cries.

            “Please…Please don’t leave me…S-S-Star has left me…Don’t you leave me too…”

            “Star…?” Albus chuckled quietly. “Is that the name of my would’ve-been great-granddaughter? Such a beautiful name.”

            “She is beautiful, no matter how she looked when I saw her.”

            “Severus…?” Albus turned to Severus, in which the latter leaned forward to listen. “I have already written my will to entitle every single one of my earthly possessions to lil’ Har. You may do whatever you wish to do with it, but promise me you will make sure that it will all go to him first at the event of my death.”

            “I promise, no, I will swear my life on it,” Severus nodded as he put a reassuring hand on Albus’ shoulder.

            “Rest assured, you have my full blessings on your marriage,” Albus chuckled at the mild surprise on Harry and Severus’ faces. “Oh, don’t act surprised. I did not acquire all the experience in life to be able to tell what goes behind closed doors between you. I had an idea that Severus would pop the question sooner or later. Let’s just hope that the prophecy was right about you being the mother of…”

            “I don’t care!” Harry sobbed. “I don’t care if I am to be the mother of the Messiah! The prophecy can go rot in hell! My Star is already gone; who cares about the prophecy anymore? I want you! I want you to live, to see us in holy matrimony! That’s all I want! That’s all I care about!”

            “There, there, my lil’ Har,” Albus stroked Harry’s cheeks comfortingly, trying his best to wipe his tears away. “It’s just my time, I’m afraid. You can fight anything in this world, but you can’t fight death. Just take comfort in the fact that an old man like me is satisfied enough to watch your union through heaven’s eyes.”

            “Please…Please don’t go…Grandpa Albus, please don’t go…”

            “I am so happy to be your grandfather, Harry, and I am proud to have you as my grandson…I love you so much, Har…”

            “I love you too, Grandpa Albus…”

            With one last smile, Albus breathed his last, his hand on Harry’s cheeks slowly slipping down to his side as Harry wailed bitterly on his body, with Severus holding the boy close, hushing and comforting him from behind.

\--:--

            The prophesied ones, the members of the Order and the DA members, along with Lil, found themselves sitting in the middle of a huge Victorian hall, looking at each other questioningly and at their surroundings awkwardly. They had never felt so out of place before in a home that was clearly richer and more high-classed than any riches of the wizarding aristocrats combined. Even Trinity Vane that Harry was taken into by Lucius paled in comparison with whatever was displayed around here, almost worth a king’s ransom.

            Albus and Harry’s unborn child Star’s funeral was quite lavish, in a sense. Everyone who knew him attended the funeral, from the people of Hogwarts to the people from the Ministry. As all customary Hogwarts magic does, Albus’ portrait magically appeared in the Headmaster’s office as soon as his death came to pass and Minerva McGonagall took over as Headmistress of the school. Rufus Scrimgeour, who was supposed to be Cornelius’ successor to the position, was found to have not attended the public court hearing that day along with a few other ministers who were responsible for the Ministry scandal, and with Rita’s recording as evidence, were immediately found guilty of all charges that Albus had accused them of and was stripped off their ranks as ministers and be sent to Azkaban to receive the Dementor’s Kiss. Those who have helped the Ministry members to cover up their tracks were charged of obstruction of justice and were to serve a long sentence in Azkaban and once released, exiled into the Muggle world, their wands confiscated and broken. Kingsley Shacklebolt was voted to take over as he was one of the very few that was not corrupted by the system, and he was called in to chair the funeral.

            Many tears were shed for Albus, but no one cried harder than Harry, who had lost both a grandfather and a daughter to the collateral of war. They were both buried side by side in a great mausoleum that stood beside the lake of Hogwarts that faced the sun at the horizon: Albus entombed in a white marble sarcophagus carved in his image while Star in a smaller sarcophagus beside him with an image of beautiful little sleeping angelic little girl with wings carved, just the way Harry imagined she would’ve looked like. At the entrance of the mausoleum, there carved a sign in marble written ‘HERE LIES ALBUS PERCIVAL WULFRIC BRIAN DUMBLEDORE & STAR EILEEN POTTER-SNAPE, BELOVED TO MANY, DEPARTED HAND IN HAND TO THE HEAVENS’.

            Beck, before they were at Albus’ death bed, had requested them to come see her after everything was settled, so after handling the funeral (paid for by the mysterious group, of course), they went a week later to see Beck at the Ministry of Magic building. She brought along a Portkey, which was a sort of medieval staff, and transported everyone into the heart of Wales, where there stood a huge mansion almost the size and structure of the old castle of King Arthur a few miles ahead. They were led into the mansion and into the guest hall by the hired help while Beck went to get their mysterious hosts, which was what the gang were at right this moment.

            “I’m scared, Sev,” Harry said as he huddled close to Severus, in which Draco did the same to Remus.

            “Don’t worry, I’m right here,” Severus replied, cuddling him. “I will not let anything happen to you.”

            “Could this be anything to do with the prophecy?” Draco asked, hushing Abigail back to sleep. “About us?”

            “We’ll just have to see what all this may bring, Drake,” Remus held Amarinth close as he let out a nervous sigh. “No point worrying about it right now.”

            “What do you think might happen?” Ron asked Hermione worriedly.

            “I don’t know,” Hermione shrugged. “I must admit, I am quite perplexed—scared, even—of all this.”

            “There is no cause for alarm, everyone. Everything’s perfectly safe here.”

            Everyone looked up to see the mysterious group of men and women entered the hall, along with Beck following behind their wake. They gestured everyone to take their seat after they stood to meet their acquaintance. As they waited for the group to settle down and the hired help to prepare their tea, Harry and Draco couldn’t help but study the features of their hosts. A pair of them looked like they were brother and sister, with the same blue eyes but with different shade of hair colour (the brother a dark brown while the sister a brownish-blonde, close to dirty blonde). One had semi-long golden-blonde and sparkling green eyes like Harry’s but wore black from the neck down, and he and the siblings looked like they were roughly in their early twenties, while the rest looked about between the age of Severus’ and Remus’, and were obviously a couple. The first couple looked intelligent and professional, the man with hair like the night sky and eyes a sea-blue behind a pair of glasses and the woman about a head shorter than the man and was tiny and dainty-looking. The second couple was both almost the same height, the woman with hair the colour of autumn leaves and eyes of duckweed while the man looked important but kind, with platinum hair and dark-brown eyes. Lastly, the third couple was about a little taller than the rest of the two couples, the woman with hair as long as Hermione’s and was quite thin and frail, as if she would break if ever you squeeze her a little harder while the man was of African-American decent, but a hint of Caucasian in the mix.

            “I suppose we owe you an introduction,” the brother of the siblings finally broke the ice. “My name is Darren Hawkins and this is my sister Angelica,” he gestured to the brownish-blonde girl who waved back at them, “and this is Tony Brixius,” he gestured at the golden-blonde, “and these are Richard and Madhya Peverell,” he gestured to the first couple, “Gilbert and Ethel Lattimer,” he gestured to the second couple, “and Bernard and Tanya Gryffindor-Finnegan. We are part of a rather big family tree of the Merlin’s Council.”

            “I hope my old coot of an ancestor Godric hasn’t given you any trouble in school, Harry,” Bernard chuckled humorously. “I’ve told him many times to return to the family but he’s just too in love with the sea to care.”

            “Wait, wait…what?!” everyone suddenly exclaimed simultaneously in surprise, not even sure what exactly just hit them.

            “Sorry, I suppose we must start from the very beginning,” Gilbert guffawed at their reaction good-naturedly and took a sip of tea. “But before we start, I am sure you know at least the basics about the Grand Wizard Merlin.”

            “Of course,” Hermione immediately went to her Human Encyclopedia mode. “He was born half-fey, created by the fey goddess Mab and birthed by a Muggle mother through a union with an incubus, thus his wizarding heritage when the Muggles and their faith began to take reign of the world, leaving their magic to naught. He had been a pioneer to all wizards and witches that exists today because of his powers and his servitude to the great King Arthur and even been heralded by Muggles who study folklore as one of the greatest characters during the Arthurian years. But sadly his infatuation for a huntress named Nimue that caused him his downfall, King Arthur his trusted counselor and his apprentices their great mentor and their dispersion.”

            “Ah, such a bright mind,” Tanya complimented. “Perhaps it is a way for you to compensate for the lack of confidence in you trying to fit in to both worlds?”

            “Well, I…I didn’t mean…” Hermione, surprisingly, was not insulted by this, instead was flustered at her insecurities being read so easily.

            “Oh, take it easy there, Ms. Granger,” Angelica laughed. “We’re not here to judge, but unfortunately, you only got the top half right.”

            “It is true that the Grand Wizard Merlin was born half-fey,” Tony said in his quiet, mysterious way. “Because of the Muggles growing in number and population and their adoption of their religious faith, the fey goddess Mab and her sister the Lady of the Lake were losing reign on earth. Contrary to people saying that the Lady of the Lake quietly submitted to their vanishing fate, she was the one who actually helped Mab to achieve in creating the perfect half-human-half-fey entity and summoned an incubus to embed the entity within him and enchanted him into impregnating a Muggle woman named Elissa. She did not survive the birth, so they both instructed another Muggle woman named Ambrosia to take care of him until he comes of age to be taken by Mab and the Lady of the Lake to be taught the ways of magic.”

            “Then it’s true that he had been under the service of King Arthur?” Tonks asked in interest.

            “Yes, of course,” Ethel replied. “He had been in service since Arthur’s father King Uther’s time. And as you have read in the legends, it is true that Arthur was born from a union between the Duke of Cornwall’s wife and King Uther under the guise of a glamour spell, but unlike what legends say about it being Merlin’s direct doing into helping him bed the Duke’s wife, it was King Uther himself who somehow managed to sneak away the first generation of Polyjuice Potion from Merlin’s potion stores to do so before finally slaughtering the Duke and his men, so Merlin was not entirely to blame in this. And yes, Morgan la Fay was King Arthur’s half-sister and all that historical legendary jazz about them being mortal enemies and always fighting each other, and about their son Mordred born out of their incest union because Arthur didn’t know any better since he was raised by Merlin after King Uther went mad with power and eventually went mad, literally. It was then after Arthur’s birth that Merlin put the sword in the stone and not the popular beliefs of him putting the sword in the stone after noticing King Uther’s beginning of his fall from grace.”

            “Thank goodness Merlin did the right thing to take custody of King Arthur after the Duke’s wife died giving birth to him because Morgan la Fay was about to curse his life,” Richard said. “Morgan la Fay was originally born disfigured because the Duke of Cornwall had invoked the powers of the dark beings to win his wife’s heart, at the cost of his children being born to bear the stigma of his sins, but Morgan la Fay was special. With her disfigurement came the power to see past anyone and view them for what they truly are, and she knew King Uther bedded her mother under the guise of the Duke with the influence of Polyjuice Potion, and because she knew that she will have a half-sibling who will not bear the stigma as she and her siblings did, she was determined to make Arthur’s life miserable by invoking the same powers her father did to curse him. If it weren’t for Merlin appearing in the nick of time, we would not have King Arthur right now.”

            “But…what does all that have to do with what you’re trying to tell us?” Draco asked.

            “Patience, young Malfoy, we’re getting there,” Darren said, taking a bite out of his crumpet before continuing. “Well, I’m sure you know the rest of the Arthur legend, which is more or less true to the word, so I will not bore you with the details. Of course, unlike the legend that said Arthur begged Merlin in his dying breath to return Excalibur from whence it came and Merlin throwing it back to the Lady of the Lake, Merlin had kept the sword, stripping it of its power and turning it to the likes of any regular sword so that it will never again be used and misused. The sword of Godric Gryffindor is, in fact, King Arthur’s sword Excalibur.”

            “What?!” all the adults exclaimed.

            “Yup, he’s right on that,” Bernard grinned. “The story about the sword being goblin-made and Godric accused of stealing it is just hogwash, a tale to throw off anyone who is seeking for the legendary sword Excalibur. The last thing we want happen is to have someone gallivanting around with it and have King Arthur’s bloody history repeat itself.”

            “But…But how…how did Godric…?” Severus was at lost of words at this piece of news.

            “Ah, this brings us to the crucial part of the whole tale: the Merlin’s Council,” Madhya pointed. “You see, this is where Ms. Granger was only half-right. Merlin _did_ fall in love with a Muggle huntress named Nimue who was actually a daughter of the king of Northumberland, but instead of her causing him his downfall, she was the greatest thing that ever happened in his life. It was thanks to Arthur’s intervention that these two lovebirds meet, since he had fairly good relationship with the king via trade businesses. He initially took her in as his apprentice because the king wanted her to learn some magic so that she could defend herself during the hunt, but during their course of apprenticeship, they somehow ended up falling in love and got married during the prime of Arthur’s kingship.”

            “So…” Lil voiced out. “You mean to say that the legend about Nimue disgusted by him and his heritage, then forcing him to teach her magic to give her advantage against his magic to enchant her and about her and finally casting him into a magic tomb and burying him alive…is not true?”

            “I thought Arthur was the one who sentenced him to death because Merlin gave him bad advice and couldn’t keep his trap shut,” Ron said quizzically.

            “Those are all defamation made by other countries who were jealous of Arthur having a powerful man by his side,” Richard shook his head. “As we have said, Arthur died in battle and freed Merlin from his servitude while at the same time gave him the Excalibur. After Arthur’s death, Merlin and Nimue took to the woods where Merlin was raised in his old home by his adopted mother Ambrosia and cast the entire area he was living in as an Unplottable. There, they lived out their lives until the end of their days while their offspring and apprentices were allowed to leave and search for their own purpose in the world with the Muggles as soon as they came of age.”

            “We,” Angelica gestured to themselves and to Beck who had been sitting beside them quietly, “are the direct descendants of Merlin.”

            It took a full 10 seconds to let everything sink in before they started exclaiming in disbelief.

            “Calm down, everyone, calm down,” Beck said as she lit a cigarette. “No need to get so worked up about this.”

            “Worked up??” Sirius almost shrieked. “Worked up doesn’t even cut it! How the hell is it possible that you are the direct descendants of Merlin?! I thought Merlin’s bloodline had already thinned out to the point where they no longer exist!”

            “Ah, this is where you are wrong,” Tony noted. “We definitely exist; we just like to keep ourselves quiet. It is better this way.”

            “You see,” Ethel began. “During that timeline when Merlin decided to live a quiet life while he let his children set their own paths in life, the dangers that Merlin had faced when he was under Arthur’s servitude continued to linger in his absence. Morgan la Fay, after Mordred and Arthur killed each other, was hell bent on revenge, blaming Merlin for the cause of all this. She and a few rogue wizards and witches and some apprentices that Merlin had turned away because they were a lost cause banded together to destroy Merlin and his family. Merlin used his magic to seal away him and his family in the forest of Brocéliande with walls of air, visible as mist to others and forever hidden from the eyes of Morgan la Fay and her people.”

            “It was mostly thanks to her that the wizarding world got the bad rep and ended up starting all these witch hunts and whatnot,” Tanya said and grimaced at the thought. “Merlin had tried to rescue as much witches and wizards as possible and hide them within Brocéliande, expanding the wizarding community and converting them to his side as he went, but the rest were met with the fate of torture, burning, drowning and the like, with the poor innocent Muggles in the tow. It was finally after the end of the Salem witch hunt that Merlin’s children and family friends managed to salvage what remained of the witches and wizards that still live to survive the hunt and took them into Brocéliande, and Merlin, at that time very old and probably the longest living wizard prior to Nicholas Flamel because of his half-fey nature, used his last and final magic to create a huge barrier that would separate the wizarding world and the Muggles before breathing his last, thus the world we are living today.”

            “Of course, our ancestors knew that if we maintain our status as Merlin’s descendants, the people will be too dependent on us and will never stand on their own two feet, so roughly a decade after Merlin’s death, we went into seclusion and passed the power to an appointed figurehead whom we trust to be able to make the tough decisions and run the wizarding world to the best of their judgments and abilities. You may consider them as the first group of people who established the Ministry of Magic and the first Head Minister to run it.”

            “Well, we do have the very famous Artemisia Lufkin, the first witch to be Head Minister, and Grogan Stump who settled the Beings vs. Beasts classification problems,” Moody went in reminiscence.

            “Yes, they are very reliable people, aren’t they?” Ethel smiled. “I have to agree that they were best among all the Ministers that had ever run the office by far.”

            “We then established the Merlin’s Council,” Darren continued. “We are the highest authority of the wizarding world and sent our family members as spies, working undercover amongst the members of the Ministry of Magic and its branches to watch over and monitor them, and act accordingly as we see fit and appropriate without revealing ourselves. You can say we are like the Kings and Queens of the entire wizarding world, but working behind the scenes to keep the wizarding world in proper order.”

            “B…Bloody hell!” Ron only managed to squeak.

            “But why continue such secrecy and seclusion?” Remus asked. “Surely you have seen what the Ministry has done to this world. Should you not step in and do something about it?”

            “Unfortunately we have been in seclusion for too long that frankly, we practically don’t exist except within the shadows of our Grand Wizard Merlin,” Madhya replied. “This world belongs to the new generation now. Yes, the trauma and tragedy of the witch hunt may have become the reason of the existence of pureblood elitists and wanting to keep their world to themselves, but it is up to them to shape the world now. We have made a blood-oath to Merlin that we will allow the youngsters to stand on their own feet and handle their own problems, and only reveal ourselves at the very dire time of their need. It is a blood-oath that is as lethal as the Unbreakable Vow. We cannot back out from it even if we wanted to. Although it is possible that our blood-oath may be relieved due to the prophecy.”

            “What do you mean?” Harry asked timidly.

            “What we’re trying to say is that,” Beck took another drag of cigarette before taking Harry’s hand. “Well, no matter how we wish for our own people’s independence, the Ministry’s action is of no excuse to hurt family.”

            “Huh? Wh…What do you mean?”

            “If you actually paid attention, you’d noticed that Angelica gestured me as well as the direct descendants of Merlin, which makes you, my little half-cousin Har, a direct descendant of Merlin as well.”

            “What?!” it was now all the kids’ turn to exclaim, with the exception of Harry looking at Beck blankly in disbelief.

            “Here, let me illustrate this for you,” Bernard accio-ed a quill and a bottle of ink that looked whitish-silver in colour. He dipped the quill into the ink and started writing on air as fluently as someone would on a whiteboard with a whiteboard marker, surprising everyone present with such an amazing new magic tool, the Weasley twins in particular. “During the seclusion and the early years of the Ministry of Magic, our family had been left down to the Peverell family, which they had Antioch, Cadmus and Ignotus Peverell. Antioch has then, because of his preference for men, had taken Artemis Gryffindor as his ‘wife’, and had sired a few children before he passed away from a rare disease after mishandling dragon’s hide, thus his children taking Artemis’ last name instead at the event of his death. Eleanor Ravenclaw had been promised to Cadmus since birth as a sign of gratitude from the Ravenclaws who were the first group of people whom Merlin had saved from the witch hunt, but the Ravenclaws are a matriarchal family, so all his children then took on Eleanor’s last name. Richard is descended directly from Ignotus even after many generations because of Ignotus’ tendency to bear sons instead of daughters, thus the Peverell surname, while his wife Madhya is descended from the Hufflepuff family who had married and branched out within the Slytherin family, and the Slytherin family came from a marriage between one of Artemis Gryffindor’s sons who inherited Antioch’s preference for men to Gavin Slytherin, the last living Slytherin at that time to be rescued by Merlin during the Salem Witch Hunt.”

            “So, in other words, the famous four founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin are also our direct descendants of Merlin!” Darren announced almost amusingly.

            “What the…How the…” Even the know-it-all Hermione was at loss of words.

            “Godric was never really fond of settling down,” Bernard rolled his eyes. “But he did leave behind a few heirs, which then slowly branched out until only my side of the family still carried on the Gryffindor family name, though mostly likely be left to me since I’m the only son born out of daughters by my parents the Gryffindor-Finnegan—take a wild guess at who’s the ‘pants’ in the relationship,” he laughed at that joke, “and one of the heirs somehow ended up being married into the Potter family, which were well-known back at their time for their long-line of Quidditch players. The Evans, on the other hand, were a small branch out when one of the Ravenclaw predecessors married into the Evans family, and it was almost pure coincidence that your father James married your mother Lily which eventually united the Merlin bloodline again.”

            “And since I am your mother’s half-brother’s daughter, that makes me a descendant of Merlin too,” Beck replied as she finished her cigarette and put it out.

            “We usually wait until our family members come of age before we reveal our lineage to them and take them into the Merlin’s Council family tree,” Tony said as he poured himself another cup of tea. “But in this case, we’d make it an exception, as do we to you all, since you have been into this Ministry scandal so deep and had been with Harry through thick and thin, oh, and you too,” he gestured to Severus, “since you’re going to take Harry as your ‘wife’. You _are_ taking him as his ‘wife’, right?”

            “Of course,” Severus nodded, holding Harry’s hand. “I will wed no one else.”

            “Good lad!” Gilbert guffawed again. “We knew you were the perfect man for Harry from the moment we found out about you.”

            “You…You have…?”

            “Of course we have! Harry may be a branch out of the family tree, but he is still family no less, and we look out for our family, even if it is from afar. Although we’re sorry that we couldn’t extend that any further down to the Muggle world, since we were supposed to be in seclusion and all.”

            “It’s alright,” Harry smiled. “It’s not your fault anyway.”

            “I was taken in as soon as I graduated from Salem’s Academy and revealed of my lineage as Rowena Ravenclaw’s descendant and subsequently Merlin’s descendant,” Beck explained. “Then when they told me about the Potters who are also descended from Godric Gryffindor and subsequently Merlin as well, I immediately remembered you, Har, because of my father telling me about you and your mother. After that, I was always in a lookout for you while working as a spy under the guise of an Auror within the Ministry of Magic to monitor them. I soon knew about you being a slave and all after I heard about the meeting Severus had with the Ministry members and Harry’s ownership switching hands to Albus, and from there, I try to keep an eye on you whenever I could. After I learnt about the prophecy and about Lil and Voldemort and all the hullabaloo whatnot, I quickly realized that it was a matter that we cannot just sit by idly and watch you fight a losing battle. We knew we had to step out for this, although we covered our tracks pretty well after that so as not to let it lead to us.”

            “Although, of course, this may sound a little awkward but that guy—Voldemort, you call him?—he’s actually descended from Salazar Slytherin.”

            “WHAT?!” everyone exclaimed, causing the twins to wake up and wail in shock, and Draco and Remus hushed them back to sleep before the Merlin’s Council continued the story.

            “Salazar Slytherin had always been known to be quite a loner and a little anti-social,” Ethel lamented. “He somehow ended up being one of the pureblood elitists because of the trauma of his family history of being in the witch hunt. The Slytherin family, after a family disagreement, stripped off their namesake as a Slytherin-Gryffindor to be only Slytherin, thus breaking the lineage of his relation with the Gryffindors but not with the Merlin’s Council, and was dying out because of their refusal to marry or be married to anyone outside the family, with the exception of a few that they had disowned because they decided to be married into the Hufflepuff family. Before he knew it, he realized he was the last living Slytherin, just like his ancestor Gavin Slytherin before he was married to Artemis Gryffindor’s son. He had to swallow his pride and marry someone outside the family, but he carefully selected someone who was still very pure of blood to do so.”

            “And of all people he had to marry,” Darren rolled his eyes in defeat, “he had to marry the Gaunts. The Gaunts were some of the very few last living pureblood wizards and witches that have been under the influence of Morgan la Fay and possible related to Mordred asd he had been rumoured to sire some heirs prior to his death by Arthur. They somehow managed to survive the witch hunt by hiding and living underground. And, yes, it’s true that the Gaunts have been heralded back in the old days for being one of the many hired assassins and wizard mercenaries during the days after Merlin retired and Morgan la Fay stepped in control and gave us the bloody bad rep. During the witch hunt, they managed to hide underground like Muggles would in a bomb shelter, still believing that they were being targeted after so many centuries had passed. Salazar managed to locate them and coaxed them out, taking them under his wing and into his family, and thus, his lineage managed to continue.”

            “You can say, in Muggles’ terms, that the Gaunts were like the Holocaust survivors,” Beck grinned.

            “The Gaunts soon were brought up to accept the ideology of marrying only within the family,” Angelica continued as she took over drawing the family tree. “And despite some who are born a little off in the head and maybe disfigured due to the inbreeding, the rest were probably more or less fine, as long as it is within the family. Finally the Gaunts became the main family as the Slytherin name—but not the bloodline—died out, but because of that close-minded ideology, they were also slowly suffering the same fate as Salazar of dying out. There have been a few minorities of the Gaunts who knew their ideology was wrong and decided to disown themselves from the family to be married into the Peverell family, but the rest continued to uphold Salazar’s legacy.”

            “The last of the Gaunts,” Gilbert cut in, “was Marvolo Gaunt, and he only had two children: a son Morfin Gaunt and a daughter Merope Gaunt before his wife died of childbirth when she was pregnant with their third child and the child was stillborn. Morfin, sadly, inherited the stigma of inbreeding, rendering him incapable of using his magic without causing grave damage, while Merope ended up becoming a late bloomer in magic because of the inbreeding and Marvolo believed her to be born a Squib. The rest, well, you pretty much know what happened to her and her son Voldemort.”

            “Then why did you not try to locate her?” Moody asked. “Take her in, rehabilitate her, or even take custody of Voldemort instead?”

            “We tried to,” Bernard said sadly. “We really did. We have tried everything we could to locate the Gaunts, but Salazar had somehow learnt the magic Merlin did to shield us away from sight as Merlin did to hide away from Morgan la Fay. By the time we realized the Gaunts existed after one of the disowned Gaunt family member who married into the Peverell family revealed it, Merope was already been given the Dementor’s Kiss after giving birth to Voldemort and our seclusion restricts our jurisdiction beyond the wizarding world. And that travelling warlock was not making our tracking any easier to find Voldemort before the Ministry did. When we heard of the warlock’s death, we knew it was too late for us to try and rehabilitate Voldemort, as murder in cold blood sanctioned the Merlin’s Council’s authority to exile him. And when he killed Lillian, it was even more unforgivable.”

            “W…What do you mean…?” Lil asked as her name was being mentioned.

            “Get this, Lil,” Beck said as she turned to her. “You’ve been wondering who had brought you back to life, right? Well,” she gestured at Madhya, “you’re looking at her.”

            Lil stared in shock as Madhya came up to her and took her hands.

            “Lil, dear, you may not know it, but you and the Rome family are a branch out from the Hufflepuff family, which means you, too, are a direct descendant of Merlin.”

            “I…I…Wh…What…? It…It can’t be…” Lil stammered. “M…My parents never said anything…”

            “They were supposed to tell you once you come of age,” Madhya sighed sadly. “But they never got the chance because Voldemort came in to kill you and your family. When we found out about it, we knew there is no way we could let your death go un-avenged, and to be killed by family was even more unforgivable. It is a crime of our highest authority, and within our laws, it has to be an eye for an eye. The Ministry had hastened your funeral by cremating you along with your family and scattered your ashes to the seas before we could even have the chance to identify your bodies, because it was Voldemort’s first kill which was sloppy and almost connected it to them. My family had spent the last 50 years trying to locate your soul and I managed to finally find you and invoke the Forbidden Magic to bring you back to life so you could execute the sentence on Voldemort, as the Merlin’s Council dictates it should.”

            “Then me waking up in Shrieking Shack…and meeting Beck…it wasn’t a coincidence…?”

            “I was actually requested to be there to wait for you,” Beck replied. “I wasn’t allowed to approach the Shrieking Shack to wake you up. It is to maintain the illusion from the Ministry that Merlin’s Council does not exist and that no ties led to us.”

            “So…does that mean…once I execute the sentence…I…I cease to exist?”

            “That is how the Forbidden Magic works, yes,” Madhya nodded.

            “Which brings us now to our current situation,” Richard got down to business. “At the moment, we have kept Voldemort down at the dungeons in our mansion and held back by our strongest wards. Now that we have revealed our lineage and are prepared to accept Harry and Severus into our family, we now must implore to the rest of you that you will not reveal any of what we had said to a single soul. Everything we have said stays within this room.”

            “But…But this…how can we…?” Ron wanted to protest but was met with a singular stern look from the group and Beck.

            “We have kept this secret for many centuries now, working behind the scenes and maintaining this balance as we see fit for the wizarding world. The time will come for us to be revealed once the prophecy has been fulfilled, but for now, please keep this amongst yourselves, or, as much as I hate to say this, you will be silenced.”

            Everyone looked at each other a little hesitantly for a few long minutes before giving each other a “What do we have to lose?” eye contact and nodded in agreement.

            “But…my child has died…” Harry said sadly. “The prophecy will never come true now.”

            “Yeah,” Draco agreed. “And I have twins, not one child. Didn’t the prophecy state that…?”

            “Ah, yes, about that,” Gilbert noted and gestured for the butler to bring them “the paperwork”. When the butler came back with it, he displayed it on the table and showed them, “The prophecy is usually only meant for the prophesied people, but since you guys are already here and know a whole lot, we might as well give it all we’ve got.”

            The paperwork revealed pictures of Harry and Severus carrying a baby in their arms and of Draco carrying one baby before Remus came into view with another baby in his arms. They were slightly fuzzy, like something that was a little bit out of focus, but there was no mistaking that it was their faces on the pictures, just as Beck said it was. Records of the Seer’s vision and her name, time and date of prophecy made were written on a couple of papyrus sheets, while the main prophecy was written in an ink that shimmered in and out between silver and gold under the light on another piece of papyrus sheet of the finest quality, and this was what it was written:

* * *

 

_In the near future, in the midst of bloodbath and sea of tears, will rise a child of the light and the child of dark that will unite the Muggles and wizards into a prosperous new age in which both nations will co-exist as one, as it was during the time of the Grand Wizard Merlin, who was born of fey from the lands of Old. The child of the light will be birthed as a firstborn son to a boy who descends from a family who have dedicated their lives to the Light, and shall be sired by a man who will have lived through the torments of the harsh reality of the prejudice but continues to retain his soul of the Light. The child of dark will be birthed as a firstborn daughter of two halves of a soul to a boy who descends from a family who have dedicated their lives to the Dark, and shall be sired by a man who will suffer the wrath of the wretched creatures of the Dark side. Together, the child of the light and the child of dark will guide the way for the wizards and open the eyes of the Muggles before leading them to a bright future_

_So it is said, so it shall be done._

_Child of Light:_

**_Mother-Harry James Potter_ **

**_Father-Severus Snape_ **

_Child of Dark:_

**_Mother-Draco Malfoy_ **

**_Father-Remus John Lupin_ **

* * *

 

            “So you see, Harry,” Gilbert said as he pointed at the prophecy. “Your child will be a firstborn son. Your child that you have lost was a girl, was it not? So you don’t have to worry, though still, my condolences. And you, Draco, your child will be a firstborn daughter of two halves of a soul. In the old context, twins are basically a person’s soul split into half, and it applies to identical twins. Fraternal twins are considered a person with two separate souls. Your little girls are identical twins, right? So technically you have already fulfilled your part of the prophecy. So all we need to wait for Harry to do it, no rush, of course.”

            Harry looked up at Severus with a smile, in which the latter smiled back and kissed his forehead, rubbing his back to ease him. Ron looked up at his twin brothers and grinned, while the Weasley twins looked at each other in fascination at the thought they were actually a soul split in half.

            “That said, I would like you to go to the dungeons to carry out the sentence,” Tony said as he stood up. “And this time, only family.”

\--:--

            “Ah, I see you’ve brought my VIP guest here.”

            Harry held Severus’ hand tight as he was gently ushered along with Lil by the group to enter the dungeon cell he was in. Voldemort was held suspended in the middle of the cell with something that looked like fine spider webs, but was tough as piano strings as it almost cut through Voldemort’s skin. Severus gave a reassuring squeeze before letting the boy join Lil to walk up front to the monster.

            “Voldemort, or should I say Tom Marvolo Riddle,” Richard said as he approached him. “You know by the sight of Harry James Potter and Lillian Rome what awaits your fate.”

            “Heh, figures,” Voldemort turned to the magical device that was hung at one of the bars of the cell. “After what you bombard to me through the listening device when you had your little discussion and tea party upstairs, how could I not?”

            “Then you understand that you have broken the most sacred of the family code,” Tony said. “You have killed the Rome and the Potter family in addition to Lily Evans of the Evans family, all of them directly descended from the Merlin’s Council. The punishment for killing family is death by the hand of the member of the family you killed.”

            “I didn’t know any better!” Voldemort roared. “It’s not exactly my fault! You know how I was brought up! You know what had happened to me that led me into this! If anyone was to blame, it is you!”

            “We agree,” Tanya said quietly. “And we hold ourselves accountable for our mistakes that we have done. It was our mistake that created you into who you are, and we shall rectify that mistake.”

            “By killing me?! What kind of justice is this?!” Voldemort turned to Harry. “You wouldn’t kill family now, would you, Harry boy? After all, we did have some good times together. You enjoyed it too, remember…”

            “Shut up!” Harry snapped at him. “That is not true! You took advantage of me and killed my family, and you killed Grandpa Albus, the only parent I had left, and it’s your fault my baby Star is dead!! You’re no family of mine!!”

            “You know what to do,” Bernard said as he produced the sword of Godric Gryffindor—the fabled Excalibur—and handed it to Lil, in which the girl took it and faced Voldemort.

            “I should make you suffer for what you have done to me and my family,” Lil said venomously at Voldemort. “But you’re pathetic right now. You’re not even worth my time.”

            So saying, she raised the sword and stabbed it through Voldemort’s gut, his dark red blood—close to black—sprayed onto her. She did it a few more time before finally embedding it into his heart, her body almost bathed in his blood. Watching Voldemort looking back at her in frozen horror, she smiled in satisfaction as she held onto the sword in place, staring Voldemort down until her body slowly dissolved into ashes that immediately vanished into thin air. Harry watched as she disappeared before everyone’s eyes before taking hold of the sword and pulled it out, watching in disgust as Voldemort tried to cling on the last thread of his life.

            “This is for everything you have done to me, raping me, killing my family, Grandpa Albus, Star…everything.”

            With a loud yell of vengeance, he swung the sword, and the last thing he remembered before blacking out was Voldemort’s head that fell at his feet.


	89. Chapter 89

            “Shall we get ready, Harry? I’ll prepare the bath.”

            “Ok, give me a moment to get my legs to work.”

            Severus lay down for a while before getting up to let the bath run, while Harry went in moments later and got into the bath before Severus to start washing up. Severus joined him as well, both washing himself and Harry together, smiling at each other on what a wonderful night they had shared before.

            It was the day the prophesied ones were finally waiting for: their wonderful wedding day. Harry had finally been accepted into the Merlin’s Council and sworn in as part of the family. In the beginning, the Merlin’s Council decided to only cover the expenses of Harry and Severus’ wedding, but after Harry spoke for Draco and Remus, being that since Lucius and Narcissa were officially behind bars, the Malfoy fortune went solely to Draco and yet he must have a steward to handle his fortune until he is of age, but Remus, being a slave and all without enough education, was not suited to be a steward, the Merlin’s Council decided that in order to make their lives simpler and at the same time protect him from any harm that may come to him while fulfilling the prophecy (and in order to make sure that Lucius and Narcissa never get their hands on the Malfoy fortune once their sentences were up) Draco were to be taken into the Merlin’s Council along with Remus, if he were willing to strip off his Malfoy title and become the new Slytherin heir. Draco agreed almost immediately, wanting to have no connection whatsoever with his old family anymore.

            So along with Harry, Draco was sworn in as part of the family and accepted into the Merlin’s Council, going under the name ‘Draco Alexi Slytherin’, and their wedding expenses taken care of by the family. According to the slave business’ law, slaves were, unfortunately, not allowed to marry or be married because of their status in society, so they have no choice but to release Remus from the slave business before they could go through with the wedding. Hogwarts and Kym, after careful consideration (and maybe a bit of a push and pressure from the Merlin’s Council behind the scenes), determined that they will make an exception towards Harry and Draco’s case being married while still schooling, just so long as it did not interfere with their studies. Lil was properly buried with her family within the sacred underground tomb of the Merlin’s Council where the ancestors were buried from the day they started the seclusion and was finally able to rest in peace with Voldemort’s issue resolved.

            Beck accompanied Draco to pay a visit to the business, in which the cunning manager requested him to get a lock of centaurs’ hair of every colour tied together in one braid. Lucky for Draco, the Merlin’s Council had a long line of connections with centaurs of the old who were more than willing to part with some of their hair, so they traveled all the way to Greece where the centaurs of old originated and still lingered, just to make the price-payment more authentic. In fact, this was probably the most easiest price-payment mission anyone had ever had in the world as Draco, Remus and Beck actually spent a rather relaxing vacation getting to know the centaurs of old and their cultures before finally receiving their required price-payment for the business. It made the manager almost jumping mad at two slave-releases in a row (meaning Harry and Remus) and Severus rather jealous for he had to go through hell getting his while Draco had it in a synch.

            All in all, Remus was officially a free man, Draco and Harry back in school, Severus returned back his old title as Potions Master and Hogwarts professor, and today they were going to celebrate the happiest day of their lives. Right now, Severus and Harry were enjoying their last bath together as dating, courting couples and was one step away to have a bath as newlyweds.

            “Are you nervous?” Harry asked as his sponge paused on his chest.

            “Quite, but thinking it’s you I’m marrying makes me a lot calmer,” Severus smiled happily.

            “Me too.”

            “I love you so much, Harry. I can’t wait for you to be married to me,” Severus kissed his forehead as he took the hand that held the sponge gently.

            “Harry Snape,” Harry chuckled. “You know that does not have as good a ring as Severus Snape.”

            “I was assuming you might take both last names. Just like our little girl did, and just as Drake will be once he’s married to Lupin. Though I must admit Slytherin-Lupin does sound a little corny, but whatever makes them happy.”

            “You’re right on that. So…Potter-Snape?”

            “That’s what I’m considering. It suits you.”

            “I like it too.”

            “Alright, time to get dried and dressed. I believe it’ll be almost time before the girls start calling you to be dressed with Drake.”

            Harry nodded, getting out and drying off before putting his bathrobe on to wait for the girls to fetch him. In reality, he was supposed to be sleeping in a separate room, what with the tradition of being bad luck to meet the bride before the wedding and vice versa. But somehow in the middle of the night, Harry got a little drunk from the ‘bachelorette’ party (since he’s the ‘bride’) with Draco, Hermione and the girls that he stumbled into Severus’ room instead of his own, and, despite Severus’ protests, just one flick of the tongue on his sensitive spot sent all of Severus’ caution and rationale spiraling out the window.

            Harry watched as Severus dried himself from head to toe with the towel before casting a drying spell for good measure. After that he got dressed in his bathrobe and went in front of the mirror to brush his hair.

            “Crud, I swear I get more tangles every time,” Severus grumbled. “I envy your hair sometimes. It is smooth, soft and silky, and has a nice wave to it. I have sticky straight, greasy hair, no matter what.”

            “Your hair is not greasy,” Harry giggled and went over to him, running his hand along Severus’ hair. “It’s just got a deceptive shine on it to make people think it’s greasy, but it’s actually quite smooth.”

            “Try looking at it tomorrow. It will be,” Severus sighed and looked in the mirror. “I don’t look like a groom. I look like Frankenstien.”

            “Then I'm lucky to be the bride of Frankenstien,” Harry chuckled.

            “You are not the bride of Frankenstien, Harry,” Severus rolled his eyes. “You are the bride of Don Juan.”

            “Don Juan is a womanizer who ends up getting dragged into Hell by the dead father of one of the women he seduced,” Harry grimaced. “I’m hardly that.”

            “True, but still the name does suit you a bit,” Severus shrugged. “I’m just nervous that I will be left at the altar.”

            “No way. I would never leave you at the altar, not after what we’ve been through. We will be together in holy matrimony, from start to finish.”

            A sudden knock at the door and an annoyed face popped in broke their conversation.

            “Aha!” Hermione exclaimed. “I _knew_ you were here! Don’t you know it’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding, Prof. Snape?”

            “Great,” Severus rolled his eyes. “Here comes the Insufferable Know-It-All.”

            “Eh heh heh, hey, Mione,” Harry waved at her awkwardly as the girl, along with the Patil twins, came to ‘arrest’ the little ‘bride’.

            “I didn’t take you one for tradition,” Severus grinned. “With you being the all-reasoning one.”

            “Like it or not, Prof. Snape, I am still a girl, you know.”

            “Alright, alright, I give,” Harry grinned as he allowed himself to be taken by the Patil twins. “It’s time anyway.”

            “Don’t worry,” Severus held his hand and squeezed reassuringly. “Everything will be fine.”

            Harry nodded and left with the girls, wondering what was in store for him to wear.

\--:--

            Draco looked incredulously at the traditional wedding gown that he was to wear provided by the Merlin’s Council. He had expected to be wearing something masculine or maybe even a white suit, but it was nothing like what was in front of him at the moment.

            “They have got to be kidding me,” Draco groaned at Lavender who was coming over with the veil.

            “Well, apparently they’re serious,” Lavender chuckled awkwardly. “You’re not so bad. You should’ve seen what they got for Harry.”

            “I am not wearing that in front of Remus. Gods, what will Remy think when he sees this.”

            “Try telling that to Harry,” Hermione laughed. “He doesn’t even want to stick out even an inch of his nose with the outfit he’s got.”

            “Why must they do this?” Draco sighed. “I bet Remy and Uncle Sev get better robes to wear than ours.”

            “N…ot exactly,” Cho smiled awkwardly.

            “What do you mean?”

            Hermione put a finger to her lips and beckoned him to follow her and the girls to the groom’s room where Severus and Remus were. Peeking in, she showed him that they were fitted dress-robes like the one Ron wore during the Yule Ball, but a bit more extravagant, and it was evident on Severus’ face that he felt Drake’s sentiments exactly on his own outfit, while Remus looked defeated, accepting the outfit that he was given without much fight and trying to look at the bright side.

            “At least they got pants,” Draco grumbled, blushing a little at how medieval his beloved looked in his wedding outfit before following the girls back into the brides’ room.

            “Hmm, sounds like Harry is about done now,” Luna said as she popped her head in to the changing closet and smiled. “Come on out of the closet, Harry. I promise it’s not gonna kill you.”

            A very long pause ensued before Harry slowly came out with his outfit. He was dressed like someone would in an elegant gothic lolita fashion, only it was long flowing that reached all the way to the floor and was all in white and a few hints of reddish-white and mini embroidery roses sewn decoratively here and there on the skirt. The Patil twins quickly came up to him to fit him his wedding veil. Draco, on the other hand, found himself wearing a mint green wedding dress that would hit the floor and trail behind him, the skirt cascading in a form of rose petals in bloom, and a matching veil in another cascading fashion.

            “You look nice, Harry,” Draco said enviously.

            “I…I look like a girl!” Harry complained. “Oh gods, everyone is gonna laugh at me, especially Severus! He will think me ridiculous. I just know it!”

            “Now, now, Har,” Molly laughed. “You know that’s not gonna happen.”

            “Just think of this: You look like a bride and I will look like a mint candy,” Draco rolled his eyes in defeat. “At least you don’t get undergarments…do you?”

            “Umm…Yeah, I do. In fact…” Harry said sheepishly as he lifted his skirt to reveal a little bit of his.

            “Remind me to kill everyone in the Merlin’s Council after this,” Draco grumbled glumly. “At least you don’t look as bad as I look.”

            “W…Wow,” Harry said as he had a closer look. “You look…pretty good.”

            “I must agree, Draco,” Hermione said as she looked him over. “The colour really suits you.”

            “Shove it,” Draco growled and went to the mirror. It was not half bad, he had to admit, but that didn’t matter. It was still a dress.

            “We really mean it. It’s not that bad.”

            “Yeah, at least you don’t look like me,” Harry groaned as he looked at himself in the mirror. “I look like some 10-year-old kid dressed in a fairy costume.”

            “You don’t look 10, Harry,” Draco sighed. “Even though you still have the size of a 10-year-old when you’re supposed to be 13, coming 14.”

            Hermione hid a grin as she accompanied Harry and Draco out of the brides’ room to the main Ministry Council Hall where all wizarding marriages are held. Kingsley and a wedding wizard preacher were there as the officiating party of this marriage, and was there at the altar with Severus and Remus along with the Weasley twins, Ron and a few others as best men waiting for the ‘brides’ to appear. It was a rather big crowd, with family and friends of both sides, including Hogwarts members and Harry’s friends from Kym, attending plus the press. Abigail and Amarinth were in the crowd as well, dressed to the nines and in the arms of the other girls who were part of the guests and not Harry’s and Draco’s bridesmaids (they could only have so much).

            “Now I feel worse than a goldfish right now,” Severus grumbled.

            “It’s not too bad,” Remus was used to being in front of a big crowd, what with him being an ex-slave and all back then. “Though I’d want this over and done with. I don’t want to subject Drake to this, especially what with his past family background with Master and Mistress Malfoy. They are waiting for the first slip up to write a story about.”

            “Typical, especially when Skeeter is involved,” Severus replied, gesturing Remus to the said woman who was chewing at her quill, writing whatever she was seeing.

            “That _is_ awful.”

            Soon the wedding march was heard and the ‘brides’ came out, first Harry led by Hagrid, then Draco led by Sirius. They would’ve had some of the Merlin’s Council members to walk them down the aisle, but what with the secrecy of the family and their blood-oath seclusion, they were their next best choice.

            “Woah…” Remus saw Draco in his outfit and held his breath. Despite the fact that he was a wearing a dress, it somehow felt rather…appealing to him, like a sort of beautiful side on Draco he had never seen before, though Draco seemed to refuse to look up at him out of embarrassment. Severus, on the other hand, was blown away. Harry looked like a dark-haired angel coming down from heaven, only able to breathe the word “Beautiful” as he came closer and closer to them.

            The people leading the ‘brides’ soon exchanged hands, Hagrid passing Harry to Severus and Sirius passing Draco to Remus. Severus blushed big time as he took Harry’s hand from Hagrid. Draco still did not look up when Sirius gave Draco over to Remus. Remus took Draco’s hand and gave Draco a reassuring squeeze. Harry looked down, pretending to be very interested in his bouquet of flowers. He could feel hushed talking and laughter behind him, and he just _knew_ someone would tease him of his outfit. He felt like crying right now for being so embarrassed like this. Severus gave a squeeze and tipped Harry’s chin up to smile at him, trying to calm him. Harry looked into Severus’ eyes and felt calmer a little, although he couldn’t get rid of the feeling of wanting to hide in a hole.

            Kingsley waited for everyone to settle down before clearing his throat and gave the customary short speech about the wondrous celebration that they were having today and how they have triumphed over evil and lived to see this day come to pass. The preacher was all prepared with a parchment containing the vows and traditional wedding transcripts along with his blessing wand and was smiling at the couple, while the poor ‘brides’ looked like a bundle of nerves but at least they was able to stand. As soon as Kingsley was done, the preacher took over.

            “My, my, how dashing you look, Lord Snape, Mr. Lupin,” the preacher complimented, then looked at Harry and Draco. “And these must be your blushing brides.”

            “Yes, preacher,” Severus replied. “Harry James Potter is his name.”

            “And what a fine name he has, as do yours, Draco, though I’ve known you and your family for some generations now. Shall we get started?”

            Both brides and grooms nodded in agreement.

            “Dearly beloved,” the preacher began after clearing his throat. “We are gathered here today to unite these two couples in holy matrimony. They have been through thick and thin and have survived the odds, and now are ready to be united in the eternal unity of life. Do you have your wedding rings with you?”

            Severus and Remus turned to their best men and received their rings. For Severus, it was the ring he had both on the day Harry almost gotten potion-poisoning. He had planned to make that day special by properly proposing to him with a ring, but it was not exactly the right time to do so, thus he kept it until today. It was a no-brainer that Harry’s eyes sparkled at the sight of the ring as it was his first time seeing it. Remus got the ring that he had gotten as a gift from the woman who had turned him. She had claimed it to be her wedding ring that was passed down from mothers to daughters, but since she was more of a rebel anyway, she decided to give it to her ‘little cub’. Harry and Draco also turned to their bridesmaids to receive their side of the rings, and Harry revealed it to be an ancient heirloom ring that used to belong to Albus while Draco got his from the Merlin’s Council who claimed that it was the ring that Salazar wore when he was alive.

            “May the couple face each other and take each other’s wrists?”

            Both couples did so.

            “If there is anyone who thinks this couple should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

            Everyone held their breaths, including the brides and grooms, hoping that there was no one to suddenly crash the wedding and shout out the dreaded objection. After a rather short pause of silence (and everyone finally remembering how to breathe), the preacher saw this as a sign of acceptance to the marriage and continued.

            “Very well, we shall proceed. Do you, Severus Snape and Remus John Lupin, take Harry James Potter and Draco Alexi Slytherin respectively as your lawful wedded wives, to have and to hold, to love and to care, to live and to obey, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, and forever honour the magical bounds of your holy matrimony till death do you part?”

            “I do,” Severus smiled proudly and slipped the ring on Harry’s finger. “With this ring, I thee wed.”

            “I do,” Remus repeated after him and copied his motions. “With this ring, I thee wed.”

            Harry looked at the ring for a moment and smiled, still unable to fathom how beautiful it looked on his finger, while Draco looked like he had gained colours of joy on his cheeks through his fair skin, ignoring some people who were surprised to hear Draco’s change of last name. Only those who knew of the existence of the Merlin’s Council understood why the change of last name, but for the others, Draco couldn’t be bothered and let them speculation on their own the reasons why.

            “Do you, Harry James Potter and Draco Alexi Slytherin, take Severus Snape and Remus John Lupin respectively as your lawful wedded husbands, to have and to hold, to love and to care, to live and to obey, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, and forever honour the magical bounds of your holy matrimony till death do you part?”

            “I…I do,” Harry took Severus’ hand and slipped the ring on, blinked his tears away in embarrassment when he heard sniggers, sounding like it was the Weasley twins. “W…With th…this ring, I th…thee w…wed.”

            “I do,” Draco swallowed his excitement enough to get the words out, although he was looking like he was about to cry pools of joyous tears. “With this ring, I thee wed.”

            “I request the couples please hold out their ring hand,” the preacher said as he pulled out his blessing wand.

            Both couples did so. Severus shot a sideways glare at the Weasley twins before mouthing “Look at me” to Harry, assuring him with his eyes that as soon as this was over, he would take Harry in his arms and make everything better. Draco looked up at Remus, trying hard not to spill his guts out and Remus gave him his signature calming effects through his golden eyes.

            “So has been spoken, so shall be it. By the power invested in me from the Ancient Secrets of Grand Wizard Merlin, I bind you heart, body and soul, and you are thus bound in holy matrimony for rest of your living days.”

            So saying, a surge of power snaked around both their wrists like a coiling snake, spilling some sort of aura over the newlyweds and binding their body and soul together. Both the brides and grooms could feel the chill coming down from their spines for a moment before Harry had tears rolling down his face, the happy realization kicked in that he was now married to Severus for now and forever, following after Draco who seemed to have started to cry openly as he moved to hug Remus, in which Remus chuckled and hugged him back.

            “And from this day forth, you are blessed with an eternal loving bond that will last you till the end of time, that you may find each other even if countless lifetimes spans between you,” the preacher continued to bless them as he waved the wand that sent a shower of sparkles falling like confetti over their heads.

            “I now pronounce you husbands and wives. You may kiss the brides.”

            Harry’s heart jumped at that. This was it. The kiss that will decide the rest of their lives. Severus didn’t need to be told twice as he leaned close to kiss him tenderly on the lips, in which Harry kissed back, his lips wet with tears. Severus just kept kissing him. This was like a good dream that he never wanted to end. Harry kissed him just as desperately as he was. He would’ve kissed him forever if it weren’t for the need for air. Remus leaned over as well to kiss Draco on the lips, very gently as well and almost didn’t want to part. Leave them there to kiss the night away and he would have been fine with that. But it was Draco who pulled away because he needed the air, but his lips were swollen and his face totally flushed as he smiled sheepishly up at him through his tears.

            “Introducing the Potter-Snape couple and the Slytherin-Lupin couple!” Kingsley announced joyously, clapping his hands along with the preacher.

            Everyone stood up and clapped and cheered, using their wands to produce rice confetti while the press snapped away at the pictures. After taking a few more pictures between family and friends and the press, everyone was ushered to the Ministry Dining Hall to have their wedding reception, in which numerous well-wishers approached the newlyweds to congratulate them and celebrated the rest of the night away. Towards the near end of the wedding reception, there were still a generous amount of people (mostly the crazy teenagers) who stayed back to have a drink fest. Draco and Remus had already disappeared to goodness knows where with their little twins, so only the Potter-Snape newlyweds were around to watch their shenanigans, but of course, Severus wasn’t about to intoxicate himself with a bunch of hormone-crazed teenagers, so he took Harry aside to a secluded area of the Hall and snogged Harry for quite a long moment.

            “We did it,” Severus pulled back for the air that he needed and smiled.

            “Yes, we did it,” Harry agreed, looking flushed and breathless. “You are now my wonderful husband and, if we’re lucky, the father of our child-to-be. Gods, I never really thought that this day would finally happen,” he started to cry again, “Sorry, my hormones must be on over drive.”

            “It’s OK, love. It’s your day. You’re entitled to cry at weddings,” Severus said as he picked Harry up bridal style, pun intended. “Shall we go and entertain our guests for a bit before we consummate our marriage?”

            “Can we consummate now?” Harry asked, smiling. “Drake and Remy are gone now. I’m sure they’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing right about now.”

            “Raunchy, aren’t we, Har?” Severus laughed a little. “But what about our guests here? You wouldn’t want to leave them having a crazy drunken riot now, would you?”

            “Oh, I’m sure they can take care of themselves. Besides, they’re in the Ministry. Someone is bound to keep them in line,” Harry said as he leaned in and nibbled on his ear.

            Severus bit his lip not to moan, “My, my, little wifey here needs a little tender loving care, aren’t we?”

            So saying, Severus carried Harry out of the Hall, leaving the teens to their devices, before making his way out of the building and into the carriage, heading towards home, and most definitely, towards a brighter future.


	90. Epilogue

            Aramis stood in front of the wall-to-wall window, looking down from the 40th floor of the skyscraper building of Foresight Conglomerate to the city below him. Taking a sip of red tea and sighing in content, he contemplated a little on the years that had led to where he was right now.

            It was a long and arduous road for him and his family to get to this point. Aramis Albus Potter-Snape was conceived roughly about 6 months after Harry and Severus had officially tied the knot. Like Abigail Selene Slyterin-Lupin and Amarinth Serene Slytherin-Lupin, he was born premature, at roughly during Harry’s 8th month of gestation due to the poor boy’s stress from juggling pregnancy and studies despite Draco’s helping him through coping it, being that he had that experience firsthand. He was in a breech position and needed C-section surgery to birth him, but luckily was born with no other complications. To the little happy couple, Aramis was the most beautiful thing they have ever created in the world next to their little unborn girl Star, and they were the happiest parents in the history of parenthood.

            Aramis knew of Star’s existence and would go with his parents to visit her grave every anniversary, along with Albus’, his great-grandfather, grave as well. He was like a surrogate little brother to the twins Abigail and Amarinth and was peas in a pod, hanging out together everywhere they went, each twin on either side of him. He grew up a rather handsome young man, with his father’s hair and his ‘mother’s eyes and nose, while Abigail and Amarinth really looked like a female blonde version of Remus. Because they were so identical that no one could tell them apart, and being that they were high-strung and prideful just like their ‘mother’ in wanting to have their own identity, Abigail and Amarinth made it their mission to dress the yin and yang of each other: Abigail would always dress in dark-coloured clothes and wore her hair long, tying them to two long ponytails that ran all the way past her calves; while Amarinth would always dress in light-coloured clothes and wore her hair short, leaving some of them long to tie them in cute ram horned-like buns while the rest was shoulder-length.

            During the course of their growing up, Harry and Severus continued to “expand their dynasty”, so to speak. Aramis was around 2 years old when he had his little sister Bethany Lily Potter-Snape and a little brother Christopher Godric Potter-Snape when he was about 5 years old. By the time Harry finally graduated from Kym, fraternal twins Ethaniel Serione Potter-Snape and Esmeralda Serenity Potter-Snape came into the picture. For Draco’s case, since werewolves tend to have a litter at a time, his family gave a new meaning to “the more, the merrier”, almost rivaling the Weasley family in terms of fertility. Remus had intended to keep his word and be the one to bear the childbirth responsibilities but Draco would not hear of it, telling him that even though he knew the consequences, he would not have the childbearing roles any other way. Abigail and Amarinth finally had some real siblings when triplets Marcus Zeke Slytherin-Lupin, Andrew Sirius Slytherin-Lupin and Francis Ember Slytherin-Lupin were born right after Draco graduated from Hogwarts. 2 years later, fraternal twins Amber Sapphire Slytherin-Lupin and Amun Zebediah Slytherin-Lupin came into the picture and another pair of identical twins Melissa Loki Slytherin-Lupin and Meredith Sheba Slytherin-Lupin about 3 years later.

            Along the way, Harry’s classmates from Kym had become family friends as time went by. Aaron, with Harry’s help, managed to buy off Jude from Barty Crouch Jr. who had lost all his wealth and honour, and his status from the Light family, after the Ministry scandal that got his father killed. Being that he was no longer being able to afford to keep Jude as his wife-by-contract, he was forced to sign off his ownership to Aaron, and with a little more extra help from Severus and Draco using their well-earned aristocratic connections, they managed to convince—although force would be the correct word—the Light family to waive off her connections with the business and legally have her as the sole heir to the family fortune. They both got married eagerly as soon as they graduated and while Aaron became an Auror and started off by trying to take down the business that caused his beloved so much pain, Jude made her mark on Kym as becoming a medi-witch alongside with Ard-Rí Constantine. Within 3 years of their marriage, they had a son named Kiaran Tyler Turunen and fraternal twin daughters Illuscia Nester Turunen and Illumai Himawari Turunen.

            Becka, after graduating from Kym, had went forth to pursue a career as a Magical Creatures Hunter, which was a self-made profession she had in order to keep track with her beloved Cyril Quigley as he traveled around with his team the Kenmare Krestels in their Quidditch matches. Their wedding was held in the middle of the Quidditch field in France for everyone to see and it was a very grand and memorable wedding for them. While Cyril went on his seasons to play Quidditch, she will follow him wherever the game took him while at the same time went off in search of rare magical creatures the wizarding world has yet to set eyes upon, jotting details about them and compiling them in hopes to publish them and rival Gilderoy Lockhart, bloke of all blokes. She then gave birth to Cyril Sidhe Quigley the II in Germany and Henrietta Faerie Quigley in Japan.

            Rach, on the other hand, didn’t go very far. Being trusted of independence by her parents, she went to a number of potion houses and magical shops to practice and enhance her potion-making skills. She even did a self-study on the ancient runes of the world and knew almost all the ancient languages from the four corners of the earth by heart, and Becka sometimes asked her to translate anything that she found during her search. Finally she opened an apothecary shop of her own at Sidhe Street, selling anything money can buy to her best of abilities. Her beau Matthew would come to visit her at least once a week either at her shop or at her home, and after several years of proper dating without having to sneak around in the school grounds all the time, they were wed and had Talos Serpentine Lee, Chris Magus Lee and Tyrone Nathaniel Lee during the course of their marriage.

            Harry, after graduating from Kym, returned to his place in those he knew and decided that since he was not really cut out for any really important jobs in the Ministry (and also probably due to the fact that he had more or less developed a phobia for that place), he would help out Severus in his side job in any way he could, while at the same time being able to keep an eye on his children. He opened an apothecary like Rach’s within Diagon Alley just beside the Weasley twins’ joke shop to sell Severus’ products and helped him to receive any special orders that may come while Severus resumed his duties as Potions Master back in Hogwarts under the new Headmistress Minerva McGonagall, letting their children to help run the apothecary as well during their free time. Draco finally got his dream career as a Herbologist and would provide the raw materials Severus needed for his potions and Remus became his assistant, at the same time hoping to find the cure for his lycanthropy curse.

            Even before their parents had planned to reveal their destiny, Aramis and the twins had always felt deep in their hearts that there was something big they were meant to do. They often go in and out of trouble trying to prove their worth, earning their reputation as The Tiresome Trio, with Aramis as the one doing the deed while Abigail and Amarinth served as his “shoulder angel and demon”, giving him two sides of their advice on any plot they plan to execute. They received reprimands in more ways than one, but their parents knew that it was their own way of grooming themselves to face what was to come in the future. So finally, on their 18th birthday, they were finally revealed of their birthright as the Merlin’s Council and also their role towards the future of the wizarding world. After letting the news sink in, Aramis and the twins gathered round their siblings and met with Harry’s family friends’ children one night at their childhood haunt, which was the Shrieking Shack, and decided to band together as a team to fulfill this prophecy.

            Convincing the Prime Minister was not a hard task, since it had been a tradition for many generations for the Ministry to let every new Prime Minister of the office to know the existence of the wizarding world. Convincing the public was another question. Aramis and the twins, along with his team, had to first round up all the magicians, illusionist and street magic performers that existed to reveal them of their true identities: Squibs and Muggle-borns who had the unfortunate luck of being denied magic education and their bloodline hidden by their parents either due to shame and fear of the unknown or due to their financial problems, especially the insane exchange rates between Muggle money and wizard money. After gathering them together to join their team, Aramis and the twins proceeded to convince the Prime Minister and subsequently the government and the Royal Family of Britain to make a live press release to reveal the existence of the wizarding world, telling the whole nation and subsequently, the whole world.

            The public was, of course, giving mixed reactions towards the news, mostly negative. Their typical human nature of fearing the unknown and always thinking of the bad things that wizards and witches might do to them clouded their judgment, accompanied by the religious radicals of the “suffer the witch” ideology who think magic were the works of the devil, fueled the public to go against the wizarding world. Only a minority few, mostly the younger generation, seemed to be rather intrigued and accepting towards it, especially those who befriended Muggle-borns back then, but the rest reacted to them like they would at the plague. It felt like the Nazis and the Klu Klux Klan era all over again as they started to view the wizards and witches as the scum of the earth that must be destroyed and viewed everyone in suspicion, wondering if their next-door neighbor or their old-time friend was really a wizard/witch in disguise. Scientists had a field day of trying to kidnap and experiment on wizards/witches or Muggle-borns to see what makes them tick and finding out the source of their powers. Muggle-borns and wizards/witches, when found by the public, were treated like freaks of nature and it got as bad as people raiding into other people’s home, going around accusing them of being freaks or the devil’s spawn and dragging them out to be tortured or beaten, some almost leading to murder. Anyone who was found to support wizards/witches and Muggle-borns were ridiculed and their lives made miserable, exactly like the old days. Huge meetings after huge meetings were held between the Ministry, led by Kingsley and Aramis and the twins, and the high-ups of every nation to debate on the issue of whether or not to continue allowing the wizarding world to exist within the Muggle community or banish them into seclusion, making them return to the way it was where no one knew the wizarding world existed in the first place, or worse, have the wizarding world exterminated.

            Needless to say, Aramis and the twins were getting both brunt of the blame, from the Muggle world and the wizarding world. Aramis had been ambushed and assaulted several times both going out or in their own home while lodging in the Muggle world. The twins almost ended up getting raped and killed by those prejudice mongers if it weren’t for Aramis and his friends rescuing them in time, and Remus almost turned wolf with rage from hearing it if it weren’t for Draco to calm him down. There have been other numerous times as well where the wizards and witches themselves go on an all-out riot and protested outside their home while they were back home in the wizarding world, yelling at them to stop whatever they were doing. The group had started to balk a little and wanted Aramis and the twins to abandon ship, but Aramis, being stubborn like his father, insisted that he could do this, that he could serve his purpose in his destiny and he knew the price to pay for all this, although in the middle of the night, he was 10 years old again as he came into his parents’ room and cuddled in their arms, balking in his tears and cried out his stress on his ‘mother’s chest while being stroked on the back by his father, as did the twins with their own parents.

            Just when Aramis and the twins thought they were overwhelmed by all this prejudice and suffering they had caused to both worlds, fate stepped in to give them a little helping hand. On a cold and harsh winter, a sudden epidemic outbreak occurred that affected the Muggle world. It was a virus that affects the part of the brain that controls the emotion of aggression and suppression, making people lose their patience easily and become paranoid over everything until it escalated to the point of committing murderous crimes beyond their control. At first, everyone put the blame on the wizarding world for creating this virus in order to get back at those who had wronged them, but after a thorough investigation, including forensics examination and a number of cases where the wizards were affected as well, they were more or less convinced that it was created scientifically as a bio-weapon and was done by Muggle parties.

            The twins gathered all intel from St. Mungo and other existing medi-wizards and medi-witches around to come up with a cure, while Aramis rounded up the Aurors to assist the Muggle agents to catch the ones responsible for the virus spread. They finally managed to catch the culprit after almost days of exhausting their resources, but at least they worked faster than it would’ve been if it were done by normal Muggle people. Certain chemicals and ingredients that were needed for the vaccine and cure were only available via wizard concoctions added into the mix of conventional Muggle chemistry, and thus they were able to work together as one to save mankind and apprehend the perpetrator. Despite reluctance from those who were prejudice against the wizards, they had to admit that this time, the wizards/witches have saved the day.

            From there, things slowly began to pick up bit by bit. It wasn’t an immediate success, but Aramis and the twins managed to make progress with the Muggle world. They first started off by removing all hidden barriers that separated between the Muggle world and the wizarding world, revealing them and reintroducing them slowly into the community. After that, they started letting the wizarding world live in colonies that are slightly separated from the Muggle society and slowly opening their doors to allow the Muggles to come and go and get to know them better, although there have been a few incidents of attempted vandalisms and threats, but nothing the wizards/witches couldn’t handle. Honeydukes, Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade and the like were slowly brought into the community for the wizarding world’s convenience and Muggles were allowed to purchase or browse from there as well. The Weasley twins’ joke shop was definitely the most popular of all the stores for both wizards/witches and Muggles alike.

            Then they slowly brought in the schools, removing the Unplottables, and integrated the Ministry with the government bit by bit, along with the branch Ministries to their respective countries as well. Wizards and witches of their profession were integrated to Muggle profession that are similar to theirs and Squibs, instead of being useless and cast to one side, unable to use magic, were given decent jobs, may it be office work, secretarial or menial work, among the Muggles. Some wizards and witches were even appointed to certain high offices and stuff, and most of them, especially from the Ministry, had slowly but surely integrated into the government departments, possibly as high as the Prime Minister’s offices, aligning the wizarding departments accordingly. They even set up amateur magic schools for Muggles for those who were interested to learn certain magical skills and various others to help the younger generation gain more knowledge and understanding of the wizarding world. While they cannot influence the religious sector, since wizards/witches were not really the religious type, they have more or less gain respect for each other and maintained a civil relationship with each other.

            The Merlin’s Council made their presence known after making sure everything was in order, shocking both the Muggles and the wizarding world alike, since they never knew they existed in the first place. They were soon hired to be at home within the Royal Family of Britain, just as Merlin did with King Arthur during the Arthurian days, serving as an advisor of the wizarding side and working alongside Muggle advisors, and gained power that was just below the Queen herself. Together, they and the rest of the wizarding world helped to solve worldwide problems one step at a time, gaining more and more of people’s trust day by day. The Potter-Snape and Slytherin-Lupin couples, along with the rest of the family within Merlin’s Council, established their foothold and soon became owner of many diversified businesses of both worlds, and Aramis and the twins were some of them as they built Foresight Conglomerate, one of the most famous and successful business tycoons next to Donald Trump.

            “Thinking about the good old days, darling?”

            Aramis turned around and smiled at upon hearing the simultaneous speech of the twins, in which he was greeted with a double hug by Abigail and Amarinth’s identical arms. He leaned down to kiss both their foreheads before letting them croon against his neck, continuing to stare down at the world below. During the turmoil of trying to bring Muggles and wizards/witches under one nation, he had somehow developed feelings for both girls, and the feeling was mutual, since the twins had always been sharing things at a very young age despite their different getup. They were troubled at first since wizard laws were ultimately similar to Muggle laws regarding bigamy, but since they were descended from the Merlin’s Council, they were bound within their own Arthurian Law of the Old, in which in the olden days, having more than one wife was very common. So about a week after the Muggles and wizards/witches signed the treaty to combine their worlds under one nation, they were officially wed within the grounds of the Royal Family of Britain, and were still going strong after almost more than 3 decades of marriage.

            “Isn’t it beautiful, my dears?” Aramis said. “After 15 years of struggle, we have done it. Now there is no one in this world who does not know about magic, and who would’ve thought that magic and science can truly co-exist with each other. Everyone is truly at peace with each other right now.”

            “We’ve come a long way to get here, darling,” Abigail cooed as she nuzzled Aramis.

            “And we’ve been through a lot to achieve our destiny,” Amarinth agreed with a smile.

            “It was all worth it,” the twins concluded simultaneously.

            “I will never get tired of the way you two talk there, my loves,” Aramis chuckled as he squeezed their shoulders.

            “You better not be.”

            “Where are the kids?”

            “We were just about to come remind you,” Abigail said. “We’re going to celebrate your mother’s birthday, and the kids are getting ready with presents at the mall right now as we speak.”

            “You need to get started on booking a place for your mother’s birthday dinner,” Amarinth grinned. “You know how your mother is when people forget his birthday.”

            “Yeah, I know,” Aramis chuckled again as he reached for the phone. “Birthdays are always special for him. I just hope our sibs remember it too.”

            “Oh, they remember, alright,” the twins giggled in unison. “And if you be good, you’ll get a special treat from us tonight.”

            “Mmm, now that is a very tempting thought. I look forward to it.”

            Yes, he definitely looked forward to it, along with whatever may come their way in the future.

**Author's Note:**

> This is truly THE LONGEST fanfic I have ever written in my entire life of fanfic-writing! I have never written fics longer than 20++ chapters, and I pretty much have broken my record. Thank you, thank you, thank you, everyone, for supporting this fic till the end, and thank you, Lil, for being such a wonderful co-author in helping me go on till the very end of this fic~! I hope you all enjoyed the fanfic till sweet end, everyone. Lil and I thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all your patronage and support over this!


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